^.6
'*So they drank to his health, and they gave him three cheers.
While he served out additional rations"
M THE HUNTING 12"'
OF THE SNARK
AND OTHER POEMS AND
VERSES
by
LEWIS CARROLL
ILLUSTRATED
Br
PETER NEWELL
NEW YORK AND LONDON
HARPER &• BROTHERS PUBLISHERS
MCMIII
— ♦'X^T
THE L.iBRARY OF
CONGKtSS,
T«o Copies Recfeivec
OCT 16 190?^
H' ooydgtll ki.Uy
iS n- XXc. No
i> 5 / t «t
COPY J.
\c\ oZ
Copyright, 1903, by Harper & Brothers.
j4U rights reserved.
Published October, 1903.
'"^^
'-""^^^
MiM^A
CONTENTS
POEMS FROM "RHYME AND REASON^
DEDICATORY POEM
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK AN
AGONY IN EIGHT FITS
PHANTASMAGORIA .
THE THREE VOICES
THE LANG COORTIN'
ECHOES ....
a sea dirge . .
ye carpette knyghte
Hiawatha's photographing
melancholetta . . .
tema con variazioni .
a game of fives . , .
poeta fit, non nascitur
size and tears . . ,
atalanta in camden-town
four riddles
iii
PAGB
3
5
42
84
103
III
112
115
116
123
127
129
131
137
140
143
CONTENTS
PAGB
a valentine 152
fame's penny-trumpet 155
POEMS FROM "ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN
WONDERLAND^
dedicatory poem 161
the crocodile 163
a caucus-race and a long tale . 164
father william 165
a lullaby 167
the whiting and the snail . . 168
'tis the voice of the lobster . 170
turtle soup 171
THE WHITE rabbit's VERSES . . . 172
CHRISTMAS GREETINGS 174
TWINKLE, TWINKLE 175
POEMS FROM « THROUGH THE LOOKING-
GLASS"
DEDICATORY POEM . . . . . . 1 79
JABBERWOCKY 181
TWEEDLEDUM AND TWEEDLEDEE , . 183
HUSH-A-BY LADY 1 83
THE WALRUS AND THE CARPENTER . 1 84
IN WINTER, WHEN THE FIELDS ARE
WHITE 190
iv
N : , .: . . .^
■^
^^
m
CONTENTS
PAGB
I'll tell thee everything i can 193
to the looking-glass world . . 197
the riddle of the fishes . . . i98
life is but a dream 199
POEMS FROM <*SYLVIE AND BRUNO ^'
DEDICATORY POEM 203
THE MANLET 204
KING fisher's WOOING 2o8
LITTLE BIRDS 2IO
THE PIG TALE 213
TING, TING, ting! 2l8
the badgers and the herrings . 220
Bessie's song to her doll . . . 223
LOVE 224
THE gardener's SONG 226
PETER AND PAUL 229
WHEN HE WAS FAR AWAY .... 239
ONE THOUSAND POUNDS PER ANNUM 241
A LESSON IN LATIN 245
MY FANCY 247
\
&?4v4S^>c^S^:^ u-^ '^^^'^^MMi^^^ '
'■'.t-^..-.
t^
^
ILLUSTRATIONS
'so THEY DRANK TO HIS
HEALTH, AND THEY
GAVE HIM THREE
CHEERS,
WHILE HE SERVED OUT
ADDITIONAL RATIONS" Frontispiece
'he WOULD JOKE WITH HYAE-
NAS, RETURNING THEIR
STARE
WITH AN IMPUDENT WAG
OF THE HEAD "... Facing p. ID
"but OH, BEAMISH NEPHEW,
BEWARE OF THE DAY,
IF YOUR SNARK BE A BOO-
jum!'"
'the boots AND THE BROKER
WERE SHARPENING A
SPADE
vii
22
^PK.
B«»M-
^v
/^^4.'^.
I
>,^
ILLUSTRATIONS
EACH WORKING THE GRIND-
STONE IN turn" . .
'so ENGROSSED WAS THE
BUTCHER, HE HEEDED
THEM NOT,
AS HE WROTE WITH A PEN
IN EACH hand" . .
'and had spoken three
hours, before any one
guessed
what the pig was sup-
POSED TO HAVE done"
WITHOUT REST OR PAUSE —
WHILE THOSE FRUMI-
OUS JAWS
WENT SAVAGELY SNAPPING
AROUND — " ....
IN THE MIDST OF THE WORD
HE WAS TRYING TO SAY,
IN THE MIDST OF HIS
LAUGHTER AND GLEE "
HE TREMBLED WHEN HE
CAUGHT MY EYE,
AND GOT BEHIND A CHAIR"
"in CAVERNS BY THE WATER-
SIDE,
Facing p. 24
30
34
38
40
44
m
t'fi
ILLUSTRATIONS
and other places that
I've tried'" , . .
'"to drop ALL FORMAL PAR-
LEYING
AND THEN YOU'RE SURE
TO CATCH it!'" . . .
'"inspector kobold came
'^.'^. TO YOU '
THE LITTLE GHOST BEGAN "
"'I'VE OFTEN SAT AND HOWL-
ED FOR HOURS,
DRENCHED TO THE SKIN WITH
DRIVING showers'"
"'he goes about and SITS
ON FOLK
THAT eat TOO- MUCH AT
night'"
'"in ARGUING, THE SIMPLE
HEAT
SCORCHED BOTH HIS SLIP-
PERS OFF HIS feet!'"
'"and art thou gone, be-
loved GHOST?
BEST OF familiars!'" .
"yet WITH A tinge OF BIT-
TERNESS,
ix
Facing p. 46
52
56
62
70
76
82
ILLUSTRATIONS
SHE SAID, 'the more EX-
CEEDS THE less'" . . Facing p. 88
"once more he WELTERED
IN DESPAIR,
WITH HANDS, THROUGH
DENSER-MATTED HAIR" " lOO /
'"oh, hush thee, GENTLE
popinjay!
oh, hush thee, doggie
dear!'" " io6
"and FOLLOWED DOON THE
KITCHEN STAIR
THAT PRINCE OF BUTTON-
BOYS!" " I08
"l HAD A VISION OF NURSERY-
MAIDS;
TENS OF THOUSANDS PASS-
ED BY ME " .... " 112
"next, HIS BETTER HALF
TOOK courage;
SHE WOULD HAVE HER PICT-
URE taken" .... " ll8
"last, the YOUNGEST SON
WAS taken:
VERY ROUGH AND THICK HIS
HAIR was" " 1 20
X
k^
1
)}^
^''
^v-4P><-:;^i:^v.; ; ^^ :.*;^t:,^4^.^^^8^»
ILLUSTRATIONS
'"how shall I BE A POET?
HOW SHALL I WRITE IN
RHYME?'" Facing p. I32
"they doom TO PASS IN SOL-
ITUDE THE HOURS,
WRITING ACROSTIC BAL-
LADS" " 146
"rest YOUR OLD BONES, YE
WRINKLED CRONES !
THE KETTLE SINGS, THE
FIRELIGHT DANCES ". . " 148
"be YOURS THE PAY! BE
THEIRS THE PRAISE:
WE WILL NOT ROB THEM
OF THEIR due" ... " 156
"'you are old, father
william,' the young
MAN SAID,
'and your hair has BE-
COME VERY white'" . " 164
"beau — OOTIFUL SOO — OOP!
BEAU — OOTIFUL SOO — OOP!". " 170
'"and when I FOUND THE
DOOR WAS LOCKED,
I PULLED AND PUSHED AND
KICKED AND KNOCKED'" " 190
xi
^L^^ "V^'
^^^^i^^i;^"
»
7I\^
^SA
ILLUSTRATIONS
FIRST, THE FISH MUST BE
CAUGHT '
THAT IS easy; a BABY,
I THINK, COULD HAVE
CAUGHT it" ... . Facing p. I98
THEY BRISTLE BEFORE HIM
AND AFTER,
THEY FLUTTER ABOVE AND
BELOW " " 204
LITTLE BIRDS ARE FEEDING
JUSTICES WITH jam" . . " 2IO
OH, HORRID WAS THAT PIG's
despair!
his shrieks of anguish
FILLED THE AIR" . . " 214
UP ROSE THAT PIG, AND
RUSHED, FULL WHACK,
AGAINST THE RUINED
pump" " 216
thus the poor parents
talked the time away,
and wept, and wept, and
wept" " 220
clear rang their voices
THROUGH THE OCEAN'S
ROAR,
xii
^ \\\.
f
/
t
1^/ ■
\y
g:i
-;^ii -fft . « «irT 5tea gti t» ^^ .. 'l£ i
ILLUSTRATIONS
'hooray, hooray, hoo-
ray!'" Facing p. 222
he thought he saw a
kangaroo
that worked a coffee-
mill" " 226
poor peter shuddered in
de'spair;
his flowing locks he
WILDLY tore" ... " 230
''and, NOW THE mischief's
DONE, PERHAPS
you'll KINDLY GO AND PACK
YOUR TRAPS?'" .... " 244
Decorations by
Robert Murray Wright
POEMS FROM
''RHYME AND REASON
DEDICATORY POEM
Girt with a boyish garb for boyish task,
Eager she wields her spade: yet loves as well
Rest on a friendly knee, intent to ask
The tale he loves to tell.
Rude spirits of the seething outer strife,
Unmeet to read her pure and simple spright,
Deem, if you list, such hours a waste of life,
Empty of all delight!
Chat on, sweet Maid, and rescue from annoy
Hearts that by wiser talk are unbeguiled;
Ah, happy he who owns that tenderest joy.
The heart-love of a child!
Away, fond thoughts, and vex my soul no more!
Work claims my wakeful nights, my busy days,
Albeit bright memories of that sunlit shore
Yet haunt my dreaming gaze!
3
r? 2Bo .j»fc Mt — fjt.^- 1 -
"zmm
v^ a- -A. Ji'J'X #/j£j:i
KW^J
M
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
AN AGONY IN EIGHT FITS
PREFACE
If — and the thing is wildly possible — the ^/ )
^^ charge of writing nonsense were ever brought
against the author of this brief but instructive
poem, it would be based, I feel convinced, on
the line:
"Then the bowsprit got mixed with the rud-
.yc\ der sometimes":
In view of this painful possibility, I will not
(as I might) appeal indignantly to my other
writings as a proof that I am incapable of
such a deed: I will not (as I might) point to
the strong moral purpose of this poem itself,
to the arithmetical principles so cautiously
5
>
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
inculcated in it, or to its noble teachings
in Natural History — I will take the more
prosaic course of simply explaining how it
happened.
The Bellman, who was almost morbidly
sensitive about appearances, used to have the
bowsprit unshipped once or twice a week to
be revarnished; and it more than once hap-
pened, when the time came for replacing
it, that no one on board could remember
which end of the ship it belonged to. They
knew it was not of the slightest use to appeal
to the Bellman about it — he would only refer
to his Naval Code, and read out in pathetic
tones Admiralty Instructions which none of
them had ever been able to understand —
so it generally ended in its being fastened
on, anyhow, across the rudder. The helms-
man* used to stand by with tears in his eyes :
he knew it was all wrong, but alas! Rule
• This office was usually undertaken by the Boots,
who found in it a refuge from the Baker's constant
complaints about the insufficient blacking of his
three pair of boots.
6
'm:%
»s
AND OTHER POEMS
42 of the Code, "No one shall speak to the
Man at the Helm,'" had been completed by
the Bellman himself with the words "and
the Man at the Helm shall speak to no one."
So remonstrance was impossible, and no steer-
ing could be done till the next varnishing %
day. During these bewildering intervals the ^^»
ship usually sailed backward.
As this poem is to some extent connected
with the lay of the Jabberwock, let me take
this opportunity of answering a question that
has often been asked me, how to pronounce
' ' slithy toves. ' ' The " i " in " slithy ' ' is long,
as in "writhe"; and "toves" is pronounced
so as to rhyme with "groves." Again, the
first "o" in "borogoves" is pronounced like
the "o" in "borrow." I have heard people
try to give it the sound of the "o" in
"worry." Such is Human Perversity.
This also seems a fitting occasion to notice
the other hard words in that poem. Humpty-
Dumpty's theory, of two meanings packed
into one word like a portmanteau, seems to
me the right explanation for all.
7
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
For instance, take the two words "fum-
ing" and "furious." Make up your mind
that you will say both words, but leave it
unsettled which you will say first. Now
open your mouth and speak. If your
thoughts incline ever so little towards "fum-
ing," you will say " fuming-furious " ; if they
turn, by even a hair's - breadth, towards
"furious," you will say "furious-fuming";
but if you have that rarest of gifts, a per-
fectly balanced mind, you will say "frumi-
ous."
Supposing that, when Pistol uttered the
well-known words —
" Under which king, Bezonian? Speak or die!"
! Justice Shallow had felt certain that it was
I either William or Richard, but had not been
'', able to settle which, so that he could not
] possibly say either name before the other,
; can it be doubted that, rather than die, he
I would have gasped out "Rilchiam!"
./At;
FIT THE FIRST — THE LANDING
"Just the place for a Snark!" the Bellman cried,
As he landed his crew with care;
Supporting each man on the top of the tide
By a finger entwined in his hair.
"Just the place for a Snark! I have said it twice:
That alone should encourage the crew.
Just the place for a Snark! I have said it thrice:
What I tell you three times is true."
The crew was complete: it included a Boots —
A maker of Bonnets and Hoods —
A Barrister, brought to arrange their disputes —
And a Broker, to value their goods.
A Billiard-marker, whose skill was immense,
Might perhaps have won more than his share —
But a Banker, engaged at enormous expense.
Had the whole of their cash in his care.
9
^^=*^^^ "■••.../.^«^
p^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
There was also a Beaver, that paced on the deck, L.
Or would sit making lace in the bow: f>
And had often (the Bellman said) saved them from wreck
Though none of the sailors knew how, u
There was one who was famed for the number of things
He forgot when he entered the ship:
His umbrella, his watch, all his jewels and rings,
And the clothes he had bought for the trip.
He had forty-two boxes, all carefully packed,
With his name painted clearly on each:
But, since he omitted to mention the fact.
They were all left behind on the beach.
The loss of his clothes hardly mattered, because
He had seven coats on when he came,
With three pair of boots — but the worst of it was.
He had wholly forgotten his name.
t^
He would answer to "Hi!" or to any loud cry.
Such as "Fry me!" or "Fritter my wig!"
To "What-you-may-call-um!" or " What-was-his-name!"
But especially "Thing-um-a-jig!"
■"'••. ..^*-••.■»^
' He would joke with hyaznas, returning their stare
With an impudent wag of the head"
AND OTHER POEMS
While, for those who preferred a more forcible word,
He had different names from these:
His intimate friends called him "Candle-ends,"
And his enemies "Toasted-cheese."
"His form is ungainly — his intellect small — "
(So the Bellman would often remark) —
"But his courage is perfect! And that, after all,
Is the thing that one needs with a Snark."
Vj
He would joke with hyaenas, returning their stare
With an impudent wag of the head:
And he once went a walk, paw-in-paw, with a bear,
"Just to keep up its spirits," he said.
He came as a Baker: but owned, when too late —
And it drove the poor Bellman half-mad —
He could only bake Bride-cake — for which, I may state,
No materials were to be had.
The last of the crew needs especial remark.
Though he looked an incredible dunce:
He had just one idea — but, that one being "Snark,"
The good Bellman engaged him at once.
/f
^.
i
if''*
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
He came as a Butcher: but gravely declared,
When the ship had been sailing a week,
He could only kill Beavers. The Bellman looked scared.
And was almost too frightened to speak:
But at length he explained, in a tremulous tone,
There was only one Beaver on board;
And that was a tame one he had of his own,
Whose death would be deeply deplored.
The Beaver, who happened to hear the remark,
Protested, with tears in its eyes.
That not even the rapture of hunting the Snark
Could atone for that dismal surprise!
It strongly advised that the Butcher should be
Conveyed in a separate ship:
But the Bellman declared that would never agree
With the plans he had made for the trip:
Navigation was always a difficult art,
Though with only one ship and one bell:
And he feared he must really decline, for his part
Undertaking another as well.
f^^'-A
AND OTHER POEMS
The Beaver's best course was, no doubt, to procure
A second-hand, dagger-proof coat —
So the Baker advised it — and next, to insure
Its life in some Office of note:
This the Banker suggested, and offered for hire
(On moderate terms), or for sale,
Two excellent Policies, one Against Fire,
And one Against Damage From Hail.
^^t:^
Yet still, ever after that sorrowful day,
Whenever the Butcher was by.
The Beaver kept looking the opposite way.
And appeared unaccountably shy.
13
'i-" *
FIT THE SECOND— THE BELLMAN'S SPEECH
The Bellman himself they all praised to the skies —
Such a carriage, such ease and such grace!
Such solemnity, too! One could see he was wise
The moment one looked in his face!
He had bought a large map representing the sea,
Without the least vestige of land:
And the crew were much pleased when they found it to be
A map they could all understand.
"What's the good of Mercator's North Poles and Equators,
Tropics, Zones, and Meridian Lines?"
So the Bellman would cry: and the crew would reply,
"They are merely conventional signs!
"Other maps are such shapes, with their islands and capes!
But we've got our brave Captain to thank"
(So the crew would protest) "that he's bought us the best —
A perfect and absolute blank!"
14
/A
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
LATITUDE NORTH EQUATOR
Scale of Miles,
OCEAN-CHART.
15
•fy
^*^'
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
This was charming, no doubt: but they shortly found
out
That the Captain they trusted so well
Had only one notion for crossing the ocean,
And that was to tingle his bell.
'\, i^
He was thoughtful and grave — but the orders he gave
Were enough to bewilder a crew.
When he cried, "Steer to starboard, but keep her head
larboard!"
What on earth was the helmsman to do?
Then the bowsprit got mixed with the rudder sometimes :
A thing, as the Bellman remarked,
That frequently happens in tropical climes.
When a vessel is, so to speak, "snarked."
:s!
But the principal failing occurred in the sailing,
And the Bellman, perplexed and distressed.
Said he had hoped, at least, when the wind blew due east,
That the ship would not travel due west!
But the danger was past — they had landed at last,
With their boxes, portmanteaus, and bags:
i6
,c*-'**'*v^
AND OTHER POEMS
Yet at first sight the crew were not pleased with the view,
Which consisted of chasms and crags.
The Bellman perceived that their spirits were low,
And repeated in musical tone
Some jokes he had kept for a season of woe —
But the crew would do nothing but groan.
He served out some grog with a liberal hand,
And bade them sit down on the beach:
And they could not but own that their Captain looked
grand,
As he stood and delivered his speech.
"Friends, Romans, and countrymen, lend me your ears!"
(They were all of them fond of quotations:
So they drank to his health, and they gave him three
cheers.
While he served out additional rations).
" We have sailed many months, we have sailed many weeks,
(Four weeks to the month you may mark),
But never as yet ('tis your Captain who speaks)
Have we caught the least glimpse of a Snark!
17
•^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"We have sailed many weeks, we have sailed many days, \
(Seven days to the week I allow),
But a Snark, on the which we might lovingly gaze.
We have never beheld till now!
"Come, listen, my men, while I tell you again
The five unmistakable marks J
By which you may know, wheresoever you go, '
The warranted genuine Snarks.
"Let us take them in order. The first is the taste, ,
Which is meagre and hollow, but crisp: |
Like a coat that is rather too tight in the waist, *Sj
With a flavor of Will-o'-the-wisp. ^
wf
^
"Its habit of getting up late you'll agree
That it carries too far, when I say
That it frequently breakfasts at five-o'clock tea.
And dines on the following day.
"The third is its slowness in taking a jest.
Should you happen to venture on one,
It will sigh like a thing that is deeply distressed:
And it always looks grave at a pun.
AND OTHER POEMS
"The fourth is its fondness for bathing-machines,
Which it constantly carries about,
And beHeves that they add to the beauty of scenes —
A sentiment open to doubt.
"The fifth is ambition. It next will be right
To describe each particular batch:
Distinguishing those that have feathers, and bite,
From those that have whiskers, and scratch.
"For, although common Snarks do no manner of harm.
Yet I feel it my duty to say
Some are Boojums — " The Bellman broke off in alarm.
For the Baker had fainted away.
19
■i
■)?
FIT THE THIRD— THE BAKER'S TALE
They roused him with muffins — they roused him with
ice —
They roused him with mustard and cress —
They roused him with jam and judicious advice —
They set him conundrums to guess.
When at length he sat up and was able to speak,
His sad story he offered to tell;
And the Bellman cried, "Silence! Not even a shriek!"
And excitedly tingled his bell.
There was silence supreme! Not a shriek, not a scream,
Scarcely even a howl or a groan.
As the man they called "Ho!" told his story of woe
In an antediluvian tone.
"My father and mother were honest, though poor — "
"Skip all that!" cried the Bellman in haste.
" If it once becomes dark, there's no chance of a Snark —
We have hardly a minute to waste!
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"I skip forty years," said the Baker, in tears,
"And proceed without further remark
To the day when you took me aboard of your ship
To help you in hunting the Snark.
"A dear uncle of mine (after whom I was named)
Remarked, when I bade him farewell — "
"Oh, skip your dear uncle!" the Bellman exclaimed,
As he angrily tingled his bell.
"He remarked to me then," said that mildest of men,
"'If your Snark be a Snark, that is right:
Fetch it home by all means — you may serve it with greens
And it's handy for striking a light.
"'You may seek it with thimbles — and seek it with care;
You may hunt it with forks and hope;
You may threaten its life with a railway-share;
You may charm it with smiles and soap — '"
("That's exactly the method," the Bellman bold
In a hasty parenthesis cried,
"That's exactly the way I have always been told
That the capture of Snarks should be tried!")
21
^>^'i:'-^"-^^5^2^^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
'"But oh, beamish nephew, beware of the day,
If your Snark be a Boojum! For then
You will softly and suddenly vanish away,
And never be met with again!'
I*
s
"It is this, it is this that oppresses my soul.
When I think of my uncle's last words:
And my heart is like nothing so much as a bowl i
Brimming over with quivering curds!
"It is this, it is this — " "We have had that before!"
The Bellman indignantly said.
And the Baker replied, "Let me say it once more.
It is this, it is this that I dread!
"I engage with the Snark — every night after dark —
In a dreamy delirious fight:
I serve it with greens in those shadowy scenes,
And I use it for striking a light:
"But if ever I meet with a Boojum, that day.
In a moment (of this I am sure),
I shall softly and suddenly vanish away —
And the notion I cannot endure!"
" * But oh, beamish nephew, beware of the day,
If your Snark be a Boojum!'"
FIT THE FOURTH — THE HUNTING
The Bellman looked uffish, and wrinkled his brow.
"If only you'd spoken before!
It's excessively awkward to mention it now,
With the Snark, so to speak, at the door!
"We should all of us grieve, as you well may believe,
If you never were met with again —
But surely, my man; when the voyage began,
You might have suggested it then?
"It's excessively awkward to mention it now —
As I think I've already remarked."
And the man they called "Hi!" replied, with a sigh,
"I informed you the day we embarked.
"You may charge me with murder — or want of sense —
(We are all of us weak at times):
But the slightest approach to a false pretence
Was never among my crimes!
33
rl
Sv.-->>""^-'-:^^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"I said it in Hebrew — I said it in Dutch —
I said it in German and Greek:
But I wholly forgot (and it vexes me much)
That Enghsh is what you speak!"
'"Tis a pitiful tale," said the Bellman, whose face
Had grown longer at every word:
"But, now that you've stated the whole of your case,
More debate would be simply absurd.
"The rest of my speech" (he explained to his men)
"You shall hear when I've leisure to speak it.
But the Snark is at hand, let me tell you again!
'Tis your glorious duty to seek it!
"To seek it with thimbles, to seek it with care;
To pursue it with forks and hope;
To threaten its life with a railway-share;
To charm it with smiles and soap!
"For the Snark's a peculiar creature, that won't
Be caught in a commonplace way.
Do all that you know, and try all that you don't:
Not a chance must be wasted to-day!
24
s^-
ASk
AND OTHER POEMS
"For England expects — I forbear to proceed:
'Tis a maxim tremendous, but trite:
And you'd best be unpacking the things that you need
To rig yourselves out for the fight."
...Z^^
Then the Banker endorsed a blank check (which he crossed),
And changed his loose silver for notes:
The Baker with care combed his whiskers and hair,
And shook the dust out of his coats:
The Boots and the Broker were sharpening a spade —
Each working the grindstone in turn:
But the Beaver went on making lace, and displayed
No interest in the concern:
Though the Barrister tried to appeal to its pride,
And vainly proceeded to cite
A number of cases, in which making laces
Had been proved an infringement of right.
The maker of Bonnets ferociously planned
A novel arrangement of bows:
While the Billiard-marker with quivering hand
Was chalking the tip of his nose.
25
^^^^^^fe
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
But the Butcher turned nervous, and dressed himself fine,
With yellow kid gloves and a ruff —
Said he felt it exactly like going to dine,
Which the Bellman declared was all "stuff."
"Introduce me, now there's a good fellow," he said,
^^.. "If we happen to meet it together!"
'f^ j3 And the Bellman, sagaciously nodding his head,
Said, "That must depend on the weather."
f^
The Beaver went simply galumphing about,
^ At seeing the Butcher so shy:
And even the Baker, though stupid and stout,
Made an effort to wink with one eye.
i
"Be a man!" cried the Bellman in wrath, as he heard
The Butcher beginning to sob.
"Should we meet with a Jubjub, that desperate bird,
We shall need all our strength for the job!"
26
WC
tW{\
^¥
f<%
FIT THE FIFTH — THE BEAVER'S LESSON
i:^!
They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care;
They pursued it with forks and hope;
They threatened its Hfe with a railway-share; ^,
They charmed it with smiles and soap.
Then the Butcher contrived an ingenious plan
For making a separate sally;
And had fixed on a spot unfrequented by man,
A dismal and desolate valley.
But the very same plan to the Beaver occurred:
It had chosen the very same place:
Yet neither betrayed, by a sign or a word,
The disgust that appeared in his face.
Each thought he was thinking of nothing but "Snark"
And the glorious work of the day;
And each tried to pretend that he did not remark
That the other was going that way.
27
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
But the valley grew narrow and narrower still,
And the evening got darker and colder,
Till (merely from nervousness, not from good- will)
They marched along shoulder to shoulder.
Then a scream, shrill and high, rent the shuddering sky,
And they knew that some danger was near:
The Beaver turned pale to the tip of its tail.
And even the Butcher felt queer.
He thought of his childhood, left far, far behind —
That blissful and innocent state —
The sound so exactly recalled to his mind
A pencil that squeaks on a slate!
"'Tis the voice of the Jubjub!" he suddenly cried.
(This man, that they used to call "Dunce.")
"As the Bellman would tell you," he added, with pride,
"I have uttered that sentiment once.
"'Tis the note of the Jubjub! Keep count, I entreat,
You will find I have told it you twice.
'Tis the song of the Jubjub! The proof is complete,
If only I've stated it thrice."
28
r
\i
AND OTHER POEMS
The Beaver had counted with scrupulous care,
Attending to every word:
But it fairly lost heart, and outgrabe in despair,
When the third repetition occurred.
It felt that, in spite of all possible pains,
It had somehow contrived to lose count,
And the only thing now was to rack its poor brains
By reckoning up the amount.
"Two added to one — if that could but be done,"
It said, "with one's fingers and thumbs!"
Recollecting with tears how, in earlier years,
It had taken no pains with its sums.
"The thing can be done," said the Butcher, "I think.
The thing must be done, I am sure.
The thing shall be done! Bring me paper and ink,
The best there is time to procure."
The Beaver brought paper, portfolio, pens,
And ink in unfailing suppHes:
While strange, creepy creatures came out of their dens.
And watched them with wondering eyes.
29
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
So engrossed was the Butcher, he heeded them not,
^ As he wrote with a pen in each hand,
And explained all the while in a popular style
Which the Beaver could well understand.
ViT]
-y
"Taking Three as the subject to reason about —
A convenient number to state —
We add Seven, and Ten, and then multiply out
By One Thousand diminished by Eight.
"The result we proceed to divide, as you see,
By Nine Hundred and Ninety and Two:
Then subtract Seventeen, and the answer must be
Exactly and perfectly true.
"The method employed I would gladly explain,
While I have it so clear in my head.
If I had but the time and you had but the brain —
But much yet remains to be said.
"In one moment I've seen what has hitherto been
Enveloped in absolute mystery,
And without extra charge I will give you at large
A Lesson in Natural History."
30
" So engrossed ■was the Butcher, he heeded them not,
As he wrote with a pen in each hand"
AND OTHER POEMS
In his genial way he proceeded to say
(Forgetting all laws of propriety,
And that giving instruction, without introduction.
Would have caused quite a thrill in Society),
"As to temper, the Jubjub's a desperate bird,
Since it lives in perpetual passion:
Its taste in costume is entirely absurd —
It is ages ahead of the fashion:
P "But it knows any friend it has met once before:
J It never will look at a bribe:
u. And in charity-meetings it stands at the door,
^ And collects — though it does not subscribe.
"Its flavor when cooked is more exquisite far
Than mutton, or oysters, or eggs:
,1 (Some think it keeps best in an ivory jar,
And some, in mahogany kegs:)
"You boil it in sawdust: you salt it in glue:
You condense it with locusts and tape:
Still keeping one principal object in view —
To preserve its symmetrical shape."
31
N
'''Wit,
'¥'f--'/mh
'
"^-
^■^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
The Butcher would gladly have talked till next day,
But he felt that the Lesson must end,
And he wept with delight in attempting to say
He considered the Beaver his friend:
While the Beaver confessed, with affectionate looks
More eloquent even than tears,
It had learned in ten minutes far more than all books
Would have taught it in seventy years.
They returned hand-in-hand, and the Bellman, unmanned
(For a moment) with noble emotion,
Said, "This amply repays all the wearisome days
We have spent on the billowy ocean!"
Such friends as the Beaver and Butcher became
Have seldom, if ever, been known;
In winter or summer, 'twas always the same —
You could never meet either alone.
And when quarrels arose — as one frequently finds
Quarrels will, spite of every endeavor —
The song of the Jubjub recurred to their minds,
And cemented their friendship forever!
32
'«?^-r^:.,':
■o^^^
FX^..
vfi?;-?
FIT THE SIXTH — THE BARRISTER'S DREAM
They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care;
They pursued it with forks and hope;
They threatened its life with a railway-share;
They charmed it with smiles and soap.
But the Barrister, weary of proving in vain
That the Beaver's lace-making was wrong,
Fell asleep, and in dreams saw the creature quite plain
That his fancy had dwelt on so long.
He dreamed that he stood in a shadowy Court,
Where the Snark, with a glass in its eye.
Dressed in gown, bands, and wig, was defending a pig
On the charge of deserting its sty.
The Witnesses proved, without error or flaw.
That the sty was deserted when found:
And the Judge kept explaining the state of the law
In a soft undercurrent of sound.
3 33
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
The indictment had never been clearly expressed,
And it seemed that the Snark had begun,
And had spoken three hours, before any one guessed
What the pig was supposed to have done.
The Jury had each formed a different view
(Long before the indictment was read),
And they all spoke at once, so that none. of them knew
One word that the others had said.
"You must know — " said the Judge: but the Snark ex-
claimed, "Fudge!
That statute is obsolete quite!
Let me tell you, my friends, the whole question de-
pends
On an ancient manorial right.
"In the matter of Treason the pig would appear
To have aided, but scarcely abetted:
While the charge of Insolvency fails, it is clear,
If you grant the plea 'never indebted.'
The fact of Desertion I will not dispute:
But its guilt, as I trust, is removed
34
'^m>,^M^^y^
AND OTHER POEMS
(So far as relates to the costs of this suit)
By the Alibi, which has been proved.
"My poor client's fate now depends on your votes."
Here the speaker sat down in his place,
And directed the Judge to refer to his notes
And briefly to sum up the case.
But the Judge said he never had summed up before;
So the Snark undertook it instead,
And summed it so well that it came to far more
Than the Witnesses ever had said!
When the verdict was called for, the Jury declined,
As the word was so puzzling to spell;
But they ventured to hope that the Snark wouldn't
mind ■ iQir.fcv
ftrVw
Undertaking that duty as well. '^^^^^ '•
So the Snark found the verdict, although, as it owned,
It was spent with the toils of the day:
When it said the word "GUILTY!" the Jury all
groaned
And some of them fainted away.
35
#
-^V THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
I' Then the Snark pronounced sentence, the Judge being quite
'l&^ Too nervous to utter a word:
('■•.'^^'^ When it rose to its feet, there was silence like night,
^•' , And the fall of a pin might be heard.
"Transportation for life" was the sentence it gave,
"And then to be fined forty pound."
The Jury all cheered, though the Judge said he feared
That the phrase was not legally sound.
l^'- But their wild exultation was suddenly checked
!?"' When the jailer informed them, with tears,
Such a sentence would have not the slightest effect,
fc4 As the pig had been dead for some years.
The Judge left the Court, looking deeply disgusted:
But the Snark, though a little aghast,
As the lawyer to whom the defence was intrusted.
Went bellowing on to the last.
I
Thus the Barrister dreamed, while the bellowing seemed
To grow every moment more clear:
Till he woke to the knell of a furious bell,
Which the Bellman rang close at his ear.
36 (
^■<^^^
FIT THE SEVENTH— THE BANKER'S FATE
They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care;
They pursued it with forks and hope;
They threatened its Hfe with a railway-share;
They charmed it with smiles and soap.
And the Banker, inspired with a courage so new
It was matter for general remark,
Rushed madly ahead and was lost to their view
In his zeal to discover the Snark.
But while he was seeking with thimbles and care,
A Bandersnatch swiftly drew nigh
And grabbed at the Banker, who shrieked in despair,
For he knew it was useless to fly.
He offered large discount — he offered a check
(Drawn "to bearer") for seven-pounds-ten:
But the Bandersnatch merely extended its neck
And grabbed at the Banker again.
37 '^.
^^4
■■vlJ4
^
^•1
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Without rest or pause — while those frumious jaws
Went savagely snapping around —
He skipped and he hopped, and he floundered and flopped,
Till, fainting, he fell to the ground.
The Bandersnatch fled as the others appeared,
Led on by that fear-stricken yell:
And the Bellman remarked, "It is just as I feared!"
And solemnly tolled on his bell.
He was black in the face, and they scarcely could trace
The least likeness to what he had been:
While so great was his fright that his waistcoat turned
white —
A wonderful thing to be seen!
To the horror of all who were present that day,
He uprose in full evening dress.
And with senseless grimaces endeavored to say
What his tongue .could no longer express.
Down he sank in a chair — ran his hands through his
hair —
And chanted in mimsiest tones
38
"Without rest or pause — while those frumious jaws
Went savagely snapping around — "
^?::
AND OTHER POEMS
Words whose utter inanity proved his insanity,
While he rattled a couple of bones.
"Leave him here to his fate — it is getting so late!"
The Bellman exclaimed in a fright.
"We have lost half the day. Any further delay,
And we sha'n't catch a Snark before night!"
!^
FIT THE EIGHTH— THE VANISHING
f^^' They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care;
^ J n They pursued it with forks and hope;
'^ ' They threatened its hfe with a railway-share;
They charmed it with smiles and soap.
They shuddered to think that the chase might fail,
And the Beaver, excited at last,
Went bounding along on the tip of its tail,
For the daylight was nearly past.
"There is Thingumbob shouting!" the Bellman said.
^, "He is shouting like mad, only hark!
He is waving his hands, he is wagging his head,
He has certainly found a Snark!"
They gazed in delight, while the Butcher exclaimed,
"He was always a desperate wag!"
They beheld him — their Baker — their hero unnamed —
On the top of a neighboring crag,
\ 40
'* In the midst of the word he was trying to say.
In the midst of his laughter and glee"
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Erect and sublime, for one moment of time.
In the next, that wild figure they saw
(As if stung by a spasm) plunge into a chasm,
While they waited and listened in awe.
"It's a Snark!" was the sound that first came to their ears,
And seemed almost too good to be true.
Then followed a torrent of laughter and cheers:
Then the ominous words, "It's a Boo — "
Then, silence. Some fancied they heard in the air
A weary and wandering sigh
That sounded like " — jum!" but the others declare
It was only a breeze that went by.
i
"¥
1
ii
i
They hunted till darkness came on, but they found
Not a button, or feather, or mark
By which they could tell that they stood on the ground
Where the Baker had met with the Snark.
liilh
In the midst of the word he was trying to say,
In the midst of his laughter and glee.
He had softly and suddenly vanished away —
For the Snark was a Boojum, you see.
41
'm\V^
v""0
l^^-^-^-"-
PHANTASMAGORIA
^
PI
CANTO I. — THE TRYSTYNG
One winter night, at half-past nine,
Cold, tired, and cross, and muddy,
I had come home too late to dine.
And supper, with cigars and wine.
Was waiting in the study.
There was a strangeness in the room,
And Something white and wavy
Was standing near me in the gloom —
/ took it for the carpet-broom
Left by that careless slavey.
But presently the Thing began
To shiver and to sneeze:
On which I said, "Come, come, my man!
That's a most inconsiderate plan.
Less noise there, if you please!"
42
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"I've caught a cold," the Thing replies,
"Out there upon the landing."
I turned to look in some surprise.
And there, before my very eyes,
A little Ghost was standing!
He trembled when he caught my eye.
And got behind a chair.
"How came you here," I said, "and why?
I never saw a thing so shy.
Come out! Don't shiver there!"
He said, "I'd gladly tell you how,
And also tell you why;
But" (here he gave a little bow)
"You're in so bad a temper now.
You'd think it all a lie.
"And as to being in a fright,
Allow me to remark
That Ghosts have just as good a right,
In every way, to fear the light.
As Men to fear the dark."
43
•V^lp
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"No plea," said I, "can well excuse
Such cowardice in you:
For Ghosts can visit when they choose,
Whereas we Humans can't refuse
To grant the interview."
V
He said, "A flutter of alarm /
Is not unnatural, is it?
I really feared you meant some harm:
But, now I see that you are calm,
Let me explain my visit.
"Houses are classed, I beg to state,
According to the number
Of Ghosts that they accommodate:
(The Tenant merely counts as weight,
With Coals and other lumber).
"This is a 'one-ghost' house, and you,
When you arrived last summer.
May have remarked a Spectre who I
Was doing all that Ghosts can do
f To welcome the new-comer.
V . 44
"He trembled when he caught my eye,
And got behind a chair"
AND OTHER POEHS
"In Villas this is always done —
However cheaply rented:
For, though of course there's less of fun
When there is only room for one,
Ghosts have to be contented.
"That Spectre left you on the Third —
Since then you've not been haunted:
For, as he never sent us word,
'Twas quite by accident we heard
That any one was wanted.
r^
"A Spectre has first choice, by right,
In filling up a vacancy;
Then Phantom, Goblin, Elf, and Sprite —
If all these fail them, they invite
The nicest Ghoul that they can see.
"The Spectres said the place was low,
And that you kept bad wine:
So, as a Phantom had to go.
And I was first, of course, you know,
I couldn't well decline."
45
^i:^
\i'v
^^^^*^-v
Vl.s
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"No doubt," said I, "they settled who
Was fittest to be sent:
Yet still to choose a brat like you,
To haunt a man of forty-two,
Was no great compHment!"
"I'm not so young, sir," he replied,
" As you might think. The fact is.
In caverns by the water-side,
And other places that I've tried,
I've had a lot of practice:
"But I have never taken yet
A strict domestic part,
And in my flurry I forget
The Five Good Rules of Etiquette
We have to know by heart."
My sympathies were warming fast
Towards the little fellow:
He was so utterly aghast
At having found a Man at last.
And looked so scared and yellow.
46
t
"In caverns fay the water-side,
And other places that I've tried'"
:£2M»*ii^i
AND OTHER POEMS
"At least," I said, "I'm glad to find
A Ghost is not a dumb thing!
But pray sit down: you'll feel inclined
(If, like myself, you have not dined)
To take a snack of something:
"Though, certainly, you don't appear
A thing to offer food to!
And then I shall be glad to hear —
If you will say them loud and clear —
The Rules that you allude to."
" Thanks ! You shall hear them by-and-by-
This is a piece of luck!"
"What may I offer you?" said I.
"Well, since you are so kind, I'll try
A little bit of duck.
"One slice! And may I ask you for
Another drop of gravy?"
I sat and looked at him in awe,
For certainly I never saw
A thing so white and wavy.
47
T*
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
And still he seemed to grow more white,
More vapory, and wavier —
Seen in the dim and flickering light,
As he proceeded to recite
His "Maxims of Behavior."
Jk:M
48
I
^^■^cr
,r
y/ (0%-
^ii.'-v-
^
.^'*^i?^
CANTO II.— HYS FYVE RULES
"My First — but don't suppose," he said,
"I'm setting you a riddle —
Is — if your Victim be in bed,
Don't touch the curtains at his head,
But take them in the middle,
"And wave them slowly in and out.
While drawing them asunder;
And in a minute's time, no doubt,
He'll raise his head and look about
With eyes of wrath and wonder.
"And here you must on no pretence
Make the first observation.
Wait for the Victim to commence.
No Ghost of any common-sense
Begins a conversation.
4 49
i^rcf^i
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"If he should say, 'How came you here?'
(The way that you began, sir,)
In such a case your course is clear —
'On the bat's back, my little dear T
Is the appropriate answer.
"If after this he says no more,
You'd best perhaps curtail your
Exertions — go and shake the door,
And then, if he begins to snore.
You'll know the thing's a failure.
"By day, if he should be alone —
At home or on a walk —
You merely give a hollow groan,
To indicate the kind of tone
In which you mean to talk,
"But if you find him with his friends,
The thing is rather harder.
In such a case success depends
On picking up some candle-ends.
Or butter, in the larder,
so
y
AND OTHER POEMS
"With this you make a kind of slide
(It answers best with suet),
On which you must contrive to ghde,
And swing yourself from side to side —
One soon leams how to do it.
"The Second tells us what is right
■■^'"'' In ceremonious calls: —
'First burn a blue or crimson light'
(A thing I quite forgot to-night),
'Then scratch the door or walls.'"
I said, "You'll visit here no more.
If you attempt the Guy.
I'll have no bonfires on my floor —
And, as for scratching at the door,
I'd like to see you try!"
"The Third was written to protect
The interests of the Victim,
And tells us, as I recollect,
To treat him with a grave respect.
And not to contradict him."
SI
P-
'6^
.'".s^ta.
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"That's plain," said I, "as Tare and Tret,
To any comprehension:
I only wish some Ghosts I've met
Would not so constantly forget
The maxim that you mention!"
"Perhaps," he said, "you first transgressed
The laws of hospitality:
All Ghosts instinctively detest
The Man that fails to treat his guest \
With proper cordiality.
"If you address a Ghost as 'Thing!'
Or strike him with a hatchet,
He is permitted by the King
To drop all formal parleying —
And then you're sure to catch it!
"The Fourth prohibits trespassing
Where other Ghosts are quartered:
And those convicted of the thing
' (Unless when pardoned by the King)
Must instantly be slaughtered.
52
Di^^i?^^
"To drop all formal parleying—
And then you're sure to catch itP"
-Vri O"^ -
AND OTHER POEMS
"That simply means 'be cut up small':
Ghosts soon unite anew:
The process scarcely hurts at all — ( ^
Not more than when you're what you call
'Cut up' by a Review.
^^
"The Fifth is one you may prefer
That I should quote entire: —
The King must be addressed as 'Sir.'
This, from a simple courtier,
Is all the Laws require:
''But, should you wish to do the thing
With out-and-out politeness,
Accost him as 'My Goblin King!'
And always use, in answering.
The phrase, ' Your Royal Whiteness P
t #■••>-
"I'm getting rather hoarse, I fear,
After so much reciting:
So, if you don't object, my dear,
T^d^ We'll try a glass of bitter beer —
^ fs^^ I think it looks inviting."
^fellf S3
^^.
'A
CANTO IIL — SCARMOGES
"And did you really walk," said I,
"On such a wretched night?
I always fancied Ghosts could fly —
If not exactly in the sky,
Yet at a fairish height."
"It's very well," said he, "for Kings
To soar above the earth:
But Phantoms often find that wings —
Like many other pleasant things —
Cost more than they are worth.
"Spectres, of course, are rich, and so
Can buy them from the Elves:
But we prefer to keep below —
They're stupid company, you know.
For any but themselves:
54
-W^'l'JL;
i:^^^'^
'^"•'--r
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"For, though they claim to be exempt
From pride, they treat a Phantom
As something quite beneath contempt —
Just as no Turkey ever dreamt
Of noticing a Bantam."
"They seem too proud," said I, "to go
To houses such as mine.
Pray, how did they contrive to know
So quickly that 'the place was low,'
And that I 'kept bad wine'?"
"Inspector Kobold came to you — "
The little Ghost began.
Here I broke in. "Inspector who?
Inspecting Ghosts is something new!
Explain yourself, my man!"
"His name is Kobold," said my guest:
"One of the Spectre order:
You'll very often see him dressed
In a yellow gown, a crimson vest.
And a night-cap with a border.
55
HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"He tried the Brocken business first,
But caught a sort of chill;
So came to England to be nursed,
And here it took the form of thirst,
Which he complains of still.
"Port-wine, he says, when rich and sound,
"Warms his old bones like nectar:
And as the inns where it is found
Are his especial hunting-ground,
We call him the Inn-Spectre."
I bore it — bore it like a man —
This agonizing witticism!
And nothing could be sweeter than
My temper, till the Ghost began
Some most provoking criticism.
"Cooks need not be indulged in waste;
Yet still you'd better teach them
Dishes should have some sort of taste.
Pray, why are all the cruets placed
Where nobody can reach them?
56
I
** * Inspector Kobold came to you-
The little Ghost began "
AND OTHER POEMS
"That man of yours will never earn
His living as a waiter!
Is that queer thing supposed to bum?
(It's far too dismal a concern
To call a Moderator.)
"The duck was tender, but the pease
Were very much too old:
And just remember, if you please,
The next time you have toasted cheese,
Don't let them send it cold.
"You'd find the bread improved, I think,
By getting better flour:
And have you anything to drink
That looks a little less like ink,
And isn't quite so sour?"
Then, peering round with curious eyes,
He muttered, "Goodness gracious!"
And so went on to criticise —
"Your room's an inconvenient size:
It's neither snug nor spacious.
57
w
I
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"That narrow window, I expect,
Serves but to let the dusk in — "
"But please," said I, "to recollect
'Twas fashioned by an architect
Who pinned his faith on Ruskin!"
"I don't care who he was, sir, or
On whom he pinned his faith!
Constructed by whatever law.
So poor a job I never saw,
As I'm a living Wraith!
"What a re-markable cigar!
How much are they a dozen?"
I growled, "No matter what thy are!
You're getting as familiar
As if you were my cousin!
..^'
" Now that's a thing I will not stand,
And so I tell you fiat."
"Aha," said he, "we're getting grand!"
(Taking a bottle in his hand)
"I'll soon arrange for that!"
58
a,
AND OTHER POEMS
And here he took a careful aim,
And gayly cried, "Here goes!"
I tried to dodge it as it came,
But somehow caught it, all the same,
Exactly on my nose.
I
And I remember nothing more
That I can clearly fix,
Till I was sitting on the floor.
Repeating, "Two and five are four.
But five and two are six."
What really passed I never learned,
Nor guessed: I only know
That, when at last my sense returned.
The lamp, neglected, dimly burned —
The fire was getting low —
U i I
Through driving mists I seemed to see
A Thing that smirked and smiled:
And found that he was giving me
A lesson in Biography,
As if I were a child.
59
i:
ft'
CANTO IV.— HYS NOURYTURE
"Oh, when I was a little Ghost,
A merry time had we!
Each seated, on his favorite post,
We chumped and chawed the buttered toast
They gave us for our tea."
#-
"That story is in print!" I cried.
"Don't say it's not, because
It's known as well as Bradshaw's Guide !"
(The Ghost uneasily replied
He hardly thought it was.)
"It's not in Nursery Rhymes? And yet
I almost think it is —
'Three little Ghosteses' were set
'On posteses,' you know, and ate
Their 'buttered toasteses.'
60
-^
'■ ' ■ "'■ ■•'"0
ti^- I think 'Mine Host' might fairiy be
^\ Allowed to state his views."
67
«t:
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
He said, "It really wouldn't pay —
Folk are so full of fancies.
We visit for a single day,
And whether then we go, or stay,
Depends on circumstances.
"And, though we don't consult 'Mine Host' i
Before the thing's arranged, i
Still, if he often quits his post,
Or is not a well-mannered Ghost,
Then you can have him changed.
"But if the host's a man like you —
I mean a man of sense;
And if the house is not too new — "
"Why, what has that," said I, "to do
With Ghost's convenience?"
"A new house does not suit, you know —
It's such a job to trim it:
But, after twenty years or so,
The wainscotings begin to go,
So twenty is the limit."
68
— •■1iCi<'-M«^»J^^&.-
AND OTHER POEMS
4f
"To trim" was not a phrase I could
Remember having heard:
"Perhaps," I said, "you'll be so good
As tell me what is understood
Exactly by that word?"
"It means the loosening all the doors,"
The Ghost replied, and laughed:
"It means the drilling holes by scores
In all the skirting-boards and floors,
To make a thorough draught.
"You'll sometimes find that one or two
Are all you really need
To let the wind come whistling through-
But here there'll be a lot to do!"
I faintly gasped, "Indeed!
"If I'd been rather later, I'll
Be bound," I added, trying
(Most unsuccessfully) to smile,
"You'd have been busy all this while,
Trimming and beautifying?"
69
L.l!lli-
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"Why, no," said he; "perhaps I should
Have stayed another minute —
But still no Ghost, that's any good.
Without an introduction would
Have ventured to begin it.
"The proper thing, as you were late,
Was certainly to go:
But, with the roads in such a state,
I got the Knight-Mayor's leave to wait
For half an hour or so."
"Who's the Knight-Mayor?" I cried. Instead
Of answering my question,
"Well! If you don't know that," he said,
"Either you never go to bed.
Or you've a grand digestion!
"He goes about and sits on folk
That eat too much at night:
His duties are to pinch, and poke,
And squeeze them till they nearly choke."
(I said "It serves them right!")
70
i^
.___i
He goes about and sits on folk
That eat too much at night"
AND OTHER POEMS
"And folk that sup on things like these —
He muttered, "eggs and bacon —
Lobster — and duck — and toasted cheese —
If they don't get an awful squeeze,
I'm very much mistaken!
"He is immensely fat, and so
Well suits the occupation:
In point of fact, if you must know,
We used to call him, years ago,
The Mayor and Corporation!
"The day he was elected Mayor
I know that every Sprite meant
To vote for me, but did not dare —
He was so frantic with despair
And furious with excitement.
"When it was over, for a whim,
He ran to tell the King;
And being the reverse of slim,
A two-mile trot was not for him
A very easy thing.
71
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"So, to reward him for his run
(As it was baking hot,
And he was over twenty stone),
The King proceeded, half in fun,
To knight him on the spot."
"'Twas a great Hberty to take!"
(I fired up like a rocket.)
"He did it just for punning's sake:
'The man,' says Johnson, 'that would make
A pun, would pick a pocket!'"
"A man," said he, "is not a King."
I argued for a while,
And did my best to prove the thing —
The Phantom merely listening
With a contemptuous smile.
At last, when, breath and patience spent,
I had recourse to smoking —
"Your aim," he said, "is excellent:
But — when you call it argument —
Of course you're only joking?"
72
AND OTHER POEHS
Stung by his cold and snaky eye,
I roused myself at length
To say, "At least I do defy
^. The veriest sceptic to deny
That union is strength!"
"That's true enough," said he, "yet stay — "
I listened in all meekness —
" Union is strength, I'm bound to say;
In fact, the thing's as clear as day;
But onions — are a weakness."
73
CANTO VI. — DYSCOMFYTURE
As one who strives a hill to climb,
Who never climbed before:
Who finds it, in a little time,
Grow every moment less sublime,
And votes the thing a bore:
Yet, having once begun to try,
Dares not desert his quest,
But, climbing, ever keeps his eye
On one small hut against the sky,
Wherein he hopes to rest:
Who climbs till nerve and force are spent.
With many a puff and pant:
Who still, as rises the ascent,
In language grows more violent.
Although in breath more scant:
74
''-f9^Ptf,.
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Who, climbing, gains at length the place ^ ' .^^
That crowns the upward track; ?,
And, entering with unsteady pace,
Receives a buffet in the face
That lands him on his back:
I
And feels himself, like one in sleep, '^
Glide swiftly down again,
A helpless weight, from steep to steep,
Till, with a headlong, giddy sweep.
He drops upon the plain —
So I, that had resolved to bring
Conviction to a ghost.
And found it quite a different thing
From any human arguing,
Yet dared not quit my post:
But, keeping still the end in view
To which I hoped to come,
I strove to prove the matter true
By putting everything I knew
Into an axiom:
75
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Commencing every single phrase
With "therefore" or "because,"
I blindly reeled, a hundred ways,
About the syllogistic maze,
Unconscious where I was.
w %
Quoth he, "That's regular clap-trap:
Don't bluster any more.
Now do be cool and take a nap!
Such a ridiculous old chap
Was never seen before!
"You're like a man I used to meet,
Who got one day so furious
In arguing, the simple heat
Scorched both his slippers off his feet!"
I said, " That's very curious!"
"Well, it is curious, I agree,
And sounds, perhaps, like fibs:
But still it's true as true can be —
As sure as your name's Tibbs," said he.
I said, "My name's not Tibbs."
76
** * In arguing, the simple heat
Scorched both his slippers off his feet!*"
'' ^ ■ i^ f^ .y. ^ "•^Mi^i
AND OTHER POEMS
"ATo^ Tibbs!" he cried — his tone became
A shade or two less hearty —
"Why, no," said I. "My proper name
IsTibbets— " "Tibbets?" "Aye, the same."
"Why, then, you're not the party!"
With that he struck the board a blow
That shivered half the glasses.
"Why couldn't you have told me so
Three-quarters of an hour ago,
You prince of all the asses?
"To walk four miles through mud and rain,
To spend the night in smoking.
And then to find that it's in vain —
And I've to do it all again —
It's really too provoking!
"Don't talk!" he cried, as I began
To mutter some excuse.
"Who can have patience with a man
That's got no more discretion than
An idiotic goose?
77
: ^VtihnK...
J
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"To keep me waiting here, instead
Of telling me at once
That this was not the house!" he said.
"There, that '11 do— be off to bed!
Don't gape like that, you dunce!"
"It's very fine to throw the blame
On me in such a fashion!
Why didn't you inquire my name
The very minute that you came?"
I answered in a passion.
"Of course it worries you a bit
To come so far on foot —
But how was / to blame for it?"
"Well, well!" said he. "I must admit
That isn't badly put.
"And certainly you've given me
The best of wine and victual —
Excuse my violence," said he,
"But accidents like this, you see,
They put one out a little.
78
JM^
AND OTHER POEMS
o
'"Twas my fault, after all, I find —
Shake hands, old Turnip-top!"
The name was hardly to my mind,
But, as no doubt he meant it kind,
I let the matter drop.
"Good-night, old Tumip-top, good-night!
When I am gone, perhaps
They'll send you some inferior Sprite,
Who'll keep you in a constant fright
And spoil your soundest naps.
'/-.
%
"Tell him you'll stand no sort of trick;
Then, if he leers and chuckles.
You just be handy with a stick
(Mind that it's pretty hard and thick)
And rap him on the knuckles!
"Then carelessly remark, 'Old coon!
Perhaps you're not aware
That, if you don't behave, you'll soon
Be chuckling to another tune —
And so you'd best take care!*
79
5:^-
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"That's the right way to cure a Sprite
Of suchlike goings-on —
But, gracious me! it's getting Hght!
Good-night, old Turnip-top, good-night!"
A nod, and he was gone.
h
!t^^s*c-»^i^^iJ*^j^
CANTO VII. — SAD SOUVENAUNCE
"What's this?" I pondered. " Have I slept?
Or can I have been drinking?"
But soon a gentler feeling crept
Upon me, and I sat and wept
An hour or so, like winking.
t
"No need for Bones to hurry so!"
I sobbed. "In fact, I doubt
If it was worth his while to go —
And who is Tibbs, I'd like to know.
To make such work about?
'If Tibbs is anything like me,
It's possible," I said,
"He won't be overpleased to be
Dropped in upon at half-past three,
After he's snug in bed.
6 8i
,m^^^^-
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"And if Bones plagues him, anyhow —
Squeaking and all the rest of it,
As he was doing here just now —
/ prophesy there'll be a row.
And Tibbs will have the best of it!"
Then, as my tears could never bring
The friendly Phantom back,
It seemed to me the proper thing
To mix another glass, and sing
The following Coronach:
"And art thou gone, beloved Ghost?
Best of Familiars !
Nay, then, farewell, my duckling roast.
Farewell, farewell, my tea and toast.
My meerschaum and cigars!
"4
" The hues of life are dull and gray.
The sweets of life insipid,
When thou, my charmer, art away —
Old Brick, or rather, let me say.
Old Parallelepiped!"
82
^4.
" ' And art thott gone, beldbed Ghost ?
Best of Familiars!' "
^'v^^^
AND OTHER POEMS
Instead of singing Verse the Third,
I ceased — abruptly, rather:
But, after such a splendid word,
I felt that it would be absurd
To try it any farther.
So with a yawn I went my way
To seek the welcome downy.
And slept, and dreamed till break of day
Of Poltergeist and Fetch and Fay
And Leprechaun and Brownie!
For years I've not been visited
By any kind of Sprite;
Yet still they echo in my head.
Those parting words, so kindly said,
"Old Turnip-top, good-night!"
83
^;
•**»
* ^.
h-.
THE THREE VOICES
THE FIRST VOICE
He trilled a carol fresh and free:
He laughed aloud for very glee:
There came a breeze from off the sea:
tijy.
It passed athwart the glooming flat —
It fanned his forehead as he sat —
It lightly bore away his hat,
All to the feet of one who stood
Like maid enchanted in a wood,
Frowning as darkly as she could.
i^^
K^^ty^.^.^^
With huge umbrella, lank and brown,
Unerringly she pinned it down,
Right through the centre of the crown.
84
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Then, with an aspect cold and grim,
Regardless of its battered rim,
She took it up and gave it him.
A while like one in dreams he stood,
Then faltered forth his gratitude
In words just short of being rude:
For it had lost its shape and shine.
And it had cost him four-and-nine,
And he was going out to dine.
"To dine!" she sneered, in acid tone.
"To bend thy being to a bone
Clothed in a radiance not its own!"
The tear-drop trickled to his chin:
There was a meaning in her grin
That made him feel on fire within.
"Term it not 'radiance,'" said he:
" 'Tis solid nutriment to me.
Dinner is Dinner: Tea is Tea."
8S
W m"^^^^.
'i
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
And she "Yea so? Yet wherefore cease?
Let thy scant knowledge find increase.
Say 'Men are Men, and Geese are Geese.'"
He moaned: he knew not what to say.
The thought, "That I could get away!"
Strove with the thought, "But I must stay.
"To dine!" she shrieked, in dragon-wrath.
"To swallow wines all foam and froth!
To simper at a table-cloth!
"Say, can thy noble spirit stoop
To join the gormandizing troop
Who find a solace in the soup?
"Canst thou desire or pie or puff?
Thy well-bred manners were enough,
Without such gross material stuff."
"Yet well-bred men," he faintly said,
"Are not unwilling to be fed:
Nor are they well without the bread."
86
AND OTHER POEMS
Her visage scorched him ere she spoke:
"There are," she said, "a kind of folk
Who have no horror of a joke.
"Such wretches live: they take their share
Of common earth and common air:
We come across them here and there:
"We grant them — there is no escape —
A sort of semi-human shape
Suggestive of the manlike Ape."
"In all such theories," said he,
"One fixed exception there must be:
That is, the Present Company."
Baffled, she gave a wolfish bark:
He, aiming blindly in the dark.
With random shaft had pierced the mark.
She felt that her defeat was plain,
Yet madly strove with might and main
To get the upper hand again.
87
M
^.,
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Fixing her eyes upon the beach,
As though unconscious of his speech,
She said, " Each gives to more than each.'
m
He could not answer yea or nay:
He faltered, "Gifts may pass away."
Yet knew not what he meant to say.
:'^^-
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Low spake the voice within his head,
In words imagined more than said.
Soundless as ghost's intended tread:
"If thou art duller than before,
Why quittedst thou the voice of lore?
Why not endure, expecting more?"
" Rather than that," he groaned, aghast,
"I'd writhe in depths of cavern vast,
Some loathly vampire's rich repast."
" 'Twere hard," it answered, "themes immense
To coop within the narrow fence
That rings thy scant intelligence."
"Not so," he urged, "nor once alone:
But there was something in her tone
That chilled me to the very bone.
"Her style was anything but clear
And most unpleasantly severe;
Her epithets were very queer.
99
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"And yet, so grand were her replies,
I could not choose but deem her wise;
I did not dare to criticise;
"Nor did I leave her, till she went
So deep in tangled argument
That all my powers of thought were spent."
A little whisper inly slid,
"Yet truth is truth: you know you did."
A little wink beneath the lid.
And, sickened with excess of dread,
Prone to the dust he bent his head,
And lay like one three-quarters dead.
The whisper left him — like a breeze
Lost in the depths of leafy trees —
Left him by no means at his ease.
Once more he weltered in despair,
With hands, through denser-matted hair.
More tightly clinched than then they were.
L,^^
"Once more he weltered in despair,
"With handst through denser-matted hair **
^'
^■^cy.
^
f
AND OTHER POEMS
When, bathed in Dawn of Hving red,
Majestic frowned the mountain head,
"Tell me my fault," was all he said.
When, at high Noon, the blazing sky-
Scorched in his head each haggard eye,
Then keenest rose his weary cry.
And when at Eve the unpitying sun
Smiled grimly on the solemn fun,
"Alack," he sighed, "what have I done?'*
But saddest, darkest was the sight.
When the cold grasp of laden Night
Dashed him to earth, and held him tight.
Tortured, unaided, and alone.
Thunders were silence to his groan,
Bagpipes sweet music to its tone:
"What? Ever thus, in dismal round,
Shall Pain and Mystery profound
Pursue me like a sleepless hound,
A^i
V)
^^^
A
,/#';|
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"With crimson-dashed and eager jaws,
Me, still in ignorance of the cause,
Unknowing what I broke of laws?"
The whisper to his ear did seem
Like echoed flow of silent stream.
Or shadow of forgotten dream,
The whisper trembling in the wind:
"Her fate with thine was intertwined,"
So spake it in his inner mind:
C
"Each orbed on each a baleful star:
^ y i i'i / Each proved the other's blight and bar:
' 'll'^^'vlr Each unto each were best, most far:
"Yea, each to each was worse than foe:
Thou, a scared dullard, gibbering low,
And she, an avalanche of woe!"
V.
1-^ y.
^^r^W
.' jr^^f^^ii^
THE LANG COORTIN'
The ladye she stood at her lattice high,
Wi' her doggie at her feet;
Through the lattice she can spy
The passers in the street.
"There's one that standeth at the door,
And tirleth at the pin:
Now speak and say, my popinjay,
If I sail let him in."
M:
N
Then up and spake the popinjay
That flew abune her head:
*'Gae let him in that tirls the pin:
He Cometh thee to wed."
Oh, when he cam' the parlor in,
A woful man was he!
"And dinna ye ken your lover agen,
Sae well that loveth thee?"
103
%^^
W-
.^t«<&ft^J!?^*r-t^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"And how wad I ken ye loved me, sir,
That have been sae lang away?
And how wad I ken ye loved me, sir?
Ye never telled me sae."
Said — "Ladye dear," and the salt, salt tear
Cam' rinnin' doon his cheek,
/^" "I have sent thee tokens of my love
\ This many and many a week.
"Oh, didna ye get the rings, ladye,
The rings o' the gowd sae fine?
I wot that I have sent to thee
Fourscore, fourscore and nine."
"They cam' to me," said that fair ladye.
"Wow, they were flimsie things!"
Said — "That chain o' gowd my doggie to howd,
It is made o' thae self -same rings."
"And didna ye get the locks, the locks.
The locks o' my ain black hair,
Whilk I sent by post, whilk I sent by box,
Whilk I sent by the carrier?"
104
^ oa<»
AND OTHER POEMS
"They cam' to me," said that fair ladye;
"And I prithee send nae mair!"
Said — "That cushion sae red, for my doggie's head.
It is stuffed wi' thae locks o' hair."
"And didna ye get the letter, ladye.
Tied wi' a silken string,
Whilk I sent to thee frae the far countrie,
A message of love to bring?"
i
"It cam' to me frae the far countrie,
Wi' its silken string and a';
But it wasna prepaid," said that high-born maid,
"Sae I gar'd them tak' it awa'."
"Oh, ever alack that ye sent it back.
It was written sae clerkly and well!
Now the message it brought, and the boon that it sought,
I must even say it mysel'."
Then up and spake the popinjay,
Sae wisely counselled he.
"Now say it in the proper way:
Gae doon upon thy knee!"
los
:-/' 1 . < \'\:^
I
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
The lover he turned baith red and pale,
Went doon upon his knee:
"O ladye, hear the waesome tale
That must be told to thee!
^'
"For five lang years, and five lang years,
I coorted thee by looks;
By nods and winks, by smiles and tears.
As I had read in books.
"For ten lang years, O weary hours!
I coorted thee by signs;
.. ,;, ,„ , By sending game, by sending flowers,
'."yf-K r^ ,^ f^ I By sending Valentines.
"For five lang years, and five lang years,
I have dwelt in the far countrie.
Till that thy mind should be inclined
Mair tenderly to me.
"Now thirty years are gane and past,
I am come frae a foreign land:
I am come to tell thee my love at last-
O ladye, gie me thy hand!"
1 06
^r^"^^"^???^^'
3£^
** * Oh, hush thee, gentle popinjay !
Oh, hush thee, doggie dear !* **
AND OTHER POEMS
The ladye she turned not pale nor red,
But she smiled a pitiful smile:
"Sic' a coortin' as yours, my man," she said,
"Takes a lang and a weary while!"
And out and laughed the popinjay,
A laugh of bitter scorn:
"A coortin' done in sic' a way.
It ought not to be borne!"
Wi' that the doggie barked aloud,
And up and doon he ran,
And tugged and strained his chain o' gowd,
All for to bite the man.
"Oh, hush thee, gentle popinjay!
Oh, hush thee, doggie dear!
There is a word I fain wad say,
It needeth he should hear!"
i
Aye louder screamed that ladye fair
To drown her doggie's bark:
Ever the lover shouted mair
To make that ladye hark:
107
J.
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Shrill and more shrill the popinjay-
Upraised his angry squall:
I trow the doggie's voice that day-
Was louder than them all!
The serving-men and serving-maids
Sat by the kitchen fire:
They heard sic' a din the parlor within
As made them much admire.
Out spake the boy in buttons
(I ween he wasna thin),
"Now wha will tae the parlor gae,
j^ji^ And stay this deadlie din?"
And they have taen a kerchief,
Casted their kevils in.
For wha should tae the parlor gae,
And stay that deadlie din.
When on that boy the kevil fell
To stay the fearsome noise,
"'Gae in," they cried, "whate'er betide,
Thou prince. of button-boys!"
io8
^r-^>^^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"Oh, gin I had a popinjay
To fly abune my head,
To tell me what I ought to say,
I had by this been wed.
V:
"Oh, gin I find anither ladye,"
He said, wi' sighs and tears,
"I wot my coortin' sail not be
Anither thirty years:
"For gin I find a ladye gay,
Exactly to my taste,
I'll pop the question, aye or nay,
In twenty years at maist."
jfr*i.
]^f
'TVWWi-
ECHOES
Lady Clara Vere de Vere
Was eight years old, she said:
Every ringlet, lightly shaken, ran itself in golden thread.
She took her little porringer:
Of me she shall not win renown:
For the baseness of its nature shall have strength to drag
her down.
"Sisters and brothers, little maid?
There stands the inspector at thy door:
Like a dog, he hunts for boys who know not two and two
are four."
"Kind words are more than coronets,"
She said, and, wondering, looked at me:
"It is the dead, unhappy night, and I must hurry home
to tea."
m
s v../^ ^ ^.^^-^ -r:^^
A SEA DIRGE
There are certain things — as a spider, a ghost,
The income-tax, gout, an umbrella for three —
That I hate, but the thing that I hate the most
Is a thing they call the Sea.
Pour some salt water over the floor —
Ugly I'm sure you'll allow it to be:
Suppose it extended a mile or more.
That's very like the Sea.
Beat a dog till he howls outright —
Cruel, but all very well for a spree:
Suppose that he did so day and night,
That would be like the Sea.
I had a vision of nursery -maids ;
Tens of thousands passed by me —
All leading children with wooden spades.
And this was by the Sea.
112
v.
m.
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Who invented those spades of wood?
Who was it cut them out of the tree?
None, I think, but an idiot could —
Or one that loved the Sea.
It is pleasant and dreamy, no doubt, to float
With "thoughts as boundless, and souls as free":
But suppose you are very unwell in the boat,
How do you like the Sea?
There is an insect that people avoid
(Whence is derived the verb "to flee").
Where have you been by it most annoyed?
In lodgings by the Sea.
If you like your coffee with sand for dregs,
A decided hint of salt in your tea.
And a fishy taste in the very eggs —
By all means choose the Sea.
And if, with these dainties to drink and eat.
You prefer not a vestige of grass or tree,
And a chronic state of wet in your feet,
Then — I recommend the Sea.
8 113
A
®
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
For / have friends who dwell by the coast —
Pleasant friends they are to me!
It is when I am with them I wonder most
That any one likes the Sea.
ir--ii
^f
They take me a walk: though tired and stiff,
To climb the heights I madly agree;
And, after a tumble or so from the cliff.
They kindly suggest the Sea.
I try the rocks, and I think it cool
That they laugh with such an excess of glee.
As I heavily slip into every pool
That skirts the cold, cold Sea.
114
-^-^5,.-»,e^*^ l"^^-
>':Sj
YE CARPETTE KNYGHTE
' ■ I HAVE a horse — a ryghte goode horse —
Ne doe I envye those
Who scoure ye playne yn headye course
Tyll soddayne on theyre nose
They lyghte wyth unexpected force —
Yt ys — a horse of clothes.
u
JUL
I have a saddel — "Say'st thou soe?
Wyth stymippes, knyghte, to boote?"
I sayde not that — I answere "Noe" —
Yt lacketh such, I woote:
Yt ys a mutton-saddel, loe!
Parte of ye fleecye brute,
I have a bytte — a ryghte good bytte —
As shall bee scene yn tyme.
Ye jawe of horse yt wyll not fytte,
Yts use ys more sublyme.
Fayre syr, how deemest thou of yt?
Yt ys — thys bytte of rhyme.
"5
'I
^
"^'1'»t£r**»ff*l
>
HIAWATHA'S PHOTOGRAPHING
[In an age of imitation, I can claim no
special merit for this slight attempt at doing
what is known to be so easy. Any fairly
practised writer, with the slightest ear for
rhythm, could compose, for hours together,
in the easy running metre of "The Song of
Hiawatha." Having, then, distinctly stated
that I challenge no attention in the following
little poem to its merely verbal jingle, I must
beg the candid reader to confine his criti-
cism to its treatment of the subject.]
From his shoulder Hiawatha
Took the camera of rosewood.
Made of sHding, folding rosewood;
Neatly put it all together.
In its case it lay compactly,
Folded into nearly nothing;
But he opened out the hinges,
ii6
W..
%
^^
%:
^ .v^
TEMA CON VARIAZIONI
Why is it that Poetry has never yet been _
subjected to that process of Dilution which
has proved so advantageous to her sister-art
Music ? The Diluter gives us first a few notes
of some well-known Air, then a dozen bars
of his own, then a few more notes of the
Air, and so on alternately: thus saving the
listener, if not from all risk of recognizing the
melody at all, at least from the too-exciting
transports which it might produce in a more
concentrated form. The process is termed
"setting" by Composers, and any one that
has ever experienced the emotion of being
unexpectedly set down in a heap of mortar
will recognize the truthfulness of this happy
phrase.
For truly, just as the genuine Epicure lin-
gers lovingly over a morsel of supreme Venison
— whose every fibre seems to murmur "Ex-
celsior!" — yet swallows, ere returning to the
toothsome dainty, great mouthfuls of oat-
127
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
meal porridge and winkles: and just as thel>t-.
perfect Connoisseur in Claret permits himself
but one delicate sip, and then tosses off a pint
or more of boarding-school beer : so also —
I NEVER loved a dear gazelle —
Nor anything that cost me much:
High prices profit those who sell,
But why should I be fond of such?
To glad me with his soft black eye
My son comes trotting home from school:
He's had a fight, hut can't tell why —
He always was a little fool!
But, when he came to know me well,
He kicked me out, her testy sire:
And when I stained my hair, that Belle
Might note the change, and thus admire
And love me, it was sure to dye
A muddy green or staring blue:
While one might trace, with half an eye,
The still-triumphant carrot through.
128
y ^y
A GAME OF FIVES
Five little girls, of five, four, three, two, one:
Rolling on the hearth-rug, full of tricks and fun.
Five rosy girls, in years from ten to six:
Sitting down to lessons — no more time for tricks.
Five growing girls, from fifteen to eleven:
Music, drawing, languages, and food enough for seven!
Five winsome girls, from twenty to sixteen:
Each young man that calls I say, "Now tell me which you
mean!"
Five dashing girls, the youngest twenty-one:
But, if nobody proposes, what is there to be done?
Five showy girls — but thirty is an age
When girls may be engaging, but they somehow don't
engage.
129
■^^
m
-.-■-*«*«
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Five dressy girls, of thirty-one or more:
So gracious to the shy young men they snubbed so much
before!
Five passe girls — Their age? Well, never mind!
We jog along together, like the rest of human kind:
But the quondam "careless bachelor" begins to think he
knows
The answer to that ancient problem "how the money
goes!"
»3o
>y>**5^^''fei«^^
POETA FIT, NON NASCITUR
"How shall I be a poet?
How shall I write in rhyme?
You told me once 'the very wish
Partook of the sublime.'
Then tell me how! Don't put me off
With your 'another time'!"
The old man smiled to see him,
To hear his sudden sally;
He liked the lad to speak his mind
Enthusiastically ;
And thought, "There's no humdrum in him,
Nor any shilly-shally."
"And would you be a poet
Before you've been to school?
Ah, well! I hardly thought you
So absolute a fool.
First learn to be spasmodic —
A very simple rule.
131
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"For first you write a sentence,
And then you chop it small;
Then mix the bits, and sort them out
Just as they chance to fall:
The order of the phrases makes
No difference at all.
"Then, if you'd be impressive,
Remember what I say,
That abstract qualities begin
With capitals alway:
The True, the Good, the Beautiful —
Those are the things that pay!
^'
■«S
"Next, when you are describing
A shape, or sound, or tint;
Don't state the matter plainly,
But put it in a hint;
And learn to look at all things
With a sort of mental squint."
"For instance, if I wished, sir,
Of mutton-pies to tell,
Should I say 'dreams of fleecy flocks
132
'**How shall I be a poet?
How shall I write in rhyme?"
M
AND OTHER POEMS
Pent in a wheaten cell'?"
Why, yes," the old man said: "that phrase
Would answer very well.
Then, fourthly, there are epithets
That suit with any word —
As well as Harvey's Reading Sauce
With fish or flesh, or bird —
Of these, 'wild,' 'lonely,' 'weary,' 'strange,'
Are much to be preferred."
"And will it do, oh, will it do
To take them in a lump —
As 'the wild man went his weary way
To a strange and lonely pump'?"
"Nay, nay! You must not hastily
To such conclusions jump.
"Such epithets, like pepper,
Give zest to what you write;
And, if you strew them sparely,
They whet the appetite:
But if you lay them on too thick,
You spoil the matter quite!
133
^^^
I <
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"Last, as to the arrangement:
Your reader, you should show him,
Must take what information he
Can get, and look for no im-
Mature disclosure of the drift
And purpose of your poem.
"Therefore, to test his patience —
How much he can endure —
Mention no places, names, or dates,
And evermore be sure
Throughout the poem to be found
Consistently obscure.
"First fix upon the limit
To which it shall extend:
Then fill it up with 'padding'
(Beg some of any friend):
Your great sensation stanza
You place towards the end."
"And what is a sensation.
Grandfather, tell me, pray?
I think I never heard the word
134
*►•?
C?
^-,' -^1/-
t.:V''
ATALANTA IN CAMDEN-TOWN
Ay, 'twas here, on this spot,
In that summer of yore,
Atalanta did not
Vote my presence a bore,
Nor reply, to my tenderest talk, "She had heard all that
nonsense before."
She'd the brooch I had bought.
And the necklace and sash on,
And her heart, as I thought,
Was alive to my passion;
And she'd done up her hair in the style that the Empress
had brought into fashion.
I had been to the play
With my pearl of a Peri —
But, for all I could say.
She declared she was weary.
That "the place was so crowded and hot, and she couldn't
abide that Dundreary."
140
:?*f^
^ mm^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Then I thought, " 'Tis for me
That she whines and she whimpers!"
And it soothed me to see
Those sensational simpers,
And I said, "This is scrumptious!" — a phrase I had learned
from the Devonshire shrimpers.
And I vowed, " 'Twill be said
I'm a fortunate fellow,
When the breakfast is spread.
When the topers are mellow.
When the foam of the bride-cake is white, and the fierce
orange blossoms are yellow!"
Oh, that languishing yawn!
Oh, those eloquent eyes!
I was drunk with the dawn
Of a splendid surmise —
I was stung by a look, I was slain by a tear, by a tempest
of sighs.
And I whispered, '"Tis time!
Is not love at its deepest?
141
f '-' ^.^\
y^^
Q^^^£&^g*«^i2SS
7//j
w
p
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Shall we squander life's prime.
While thou waitest and weepest?
Let us settle it, license or banns? — though undoubtedly
banns are the cheapest."
"Ah, my Hero," said I,
"Let me be thy Leander!"
But I lost her reply —
Something ending with "gander" —
For the omnibus rattled so loud that no mortal could
quite understand her.
1
FOUR RIDDLES
[These consist of two double acrostics and two cha-
rades.
No. I. was written at the request of some young
friends who had gone to a ball at an Oxford com-
memoration — and also as a specimen of what might
be done by making the double acrostic a connected
poem instead of what it has hitherto been, a string of
disjointed stanzas on every conceivable subject, and
about as interesting to read straight through as a
page of a cyclopaedia. The first two stanzas describe
the two main words, and each subsequent stanza one
of the cross "lights."
No. II. was written after seeing Miss Ellen Terry
perform in the play of "Hamlet." In this case the
first stanza describes the two main words.
No. III. was written after seeing Miss Marion Terry
perform in Mr, Gilbert's play of "Pygmalion and
Galatea." The three stanzas respectively describe
" my first," "my second," and "my whole."]
143
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
j.'"^' -"^^
There was an ancient city, stricken down
With a strange frenzy, and for many a day
They paced from morn to eve the crowded town,
And danced the night away.
I asked the cause; the aged man grew sad:
They pointed to a building gray and tall,
And hoarsely answered, "Step inside, my lad,
And then you'll see it all."
Yet what are all such gayeties to me
Whose thoughts are full of indices and surds?
^' + 7 ^ + 53
II
But something whispered, "It will soon be done:
Bands cannot always play, nor ladies smile:
Endure with patience the distasteful fun
For just a little while!"
144 3^
I ':*:^'i^^^
AND OTHER POEMS
A change came o'er my vision — it was night:
We clove a pathway through a frantic throng:
The steeds, wild-plunging, filled us with affright:
The chariots whirled along.
Within a marble hall a river ran —
A living tide, half muslin and half cloth:
And here one mourned a broken wreath or fan.
Yet swallowed down her wrath;
And here one offered to a thirsty fair
(His words half drowned amid those thunders tuneful)
Some frozen viand (there were many there),
A toothache in each spoonful.
There comes a happy pause, for human strength
Will not endure to dance without cessation;
And every one must reach the point at length
Of absolute prostration.
At such a moment ladies learn to give.
To partners who would urge them overmuch,
A flat and yet decided negative —
Photographers love such.
I4S
^-r^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
^^ ^ There comes a welcome summons — hope revives,
"'" And fading eyes grow bright, and pulses quicken:
^sr; . Incessant pop the corks, and busy knives
^''"•*.ii^> Dispense the tongue and chicken.
Flushed with new life, the crowd flows back again:
And all is tangled talk and mazy motion —
Much like a waving field of golden grain,
Or a tempestuous ocean.
And thus they give the time that nature meant
For peaceful sleep and meditative snores
To ceaseless din and mindless merriment,
And waste of shoes and floors.
And one (we name him not) that flies the flowers.
That dreads the dances, and that shuns the salads,
They doom to pass in solitude the hours.
Writing acrostic ballads.
How late it grows! The hour is surely past
That should have warned us with its double-knock?
The twilight wanes, and morning comes at last —
"Oh, uncle, what's o'clock?"
146
**They doom to pass in solitude the hours,
Writing acrostic ballads."
iiT^""^?^ ■. - '
AND OTHER POEMS
The uncle gravely nods, and wisely winks.
It may mean much, but how is one to know?
He opes his mouth — yet out of it, methinks.
No words of wisdom flow.
n
Empress of art, for thee I twine
This wreath with all too slender skill.
Forgive my muse each halting line,
And for the deed accept the will!
O day of tears! Whence comes this spectre grim,'
Parting, like death's cold river, souls that love?
Is not he bound to thee, as thou to him.
By vows, un whispered here, yet heard above?
And still it lives, that keen and heavenward flame,]
Lives in his eye, and trembles in his tone:
And these wild words of fury but proclaim
A heart that beats for thee, for thee alone!
But all is lost: that mighty mind o'erthrown,
Like sweet bells jangled, piteous sight to see!
147
:t^^
■^i^:"^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"Doubt that the stars are fire," so runs his moan,
"Doubt Truth herself, but not my love for thee!"
A sadder vision yet: thine aged sire
Shaming his hoary locks with treacherous wile!
And dost thou now doubt Truth to be a liar?
And wilt thou die, that hast forgot to smile?
Nay, get thee hence! Leave all thy winsome ways
And the faint fragrance of thy scattered flowers:
In holy silence wait the appointed days,
And weep away the leaden-footed hours.
m
The air is bright with hues of light
And rich with laughter and with singing:
Young hearts beat high in ecstasy.
And banners wave, and bells are ringing:
But silence falls with fading day.
And there's an end to mirth and play.
Ah, well-a-day!
148
"Rest your old bones, ye Avrinkled crones!
The kettle sings, the firelight dances "
AND OTHER POEMS
Rest your old bones, ye wrinkled crones!
The kettle sings, the firelight dances.
Deep be it quaffed, the magic draught
That fills the soul with golden fancies !
For youth and pleasance will not stay,
And ye are withered, worn, and gray.
Ah, well-a-day!
O fair, cold face! O form of grace,
For human passion madly yearning!
O weary air of dumb despair,
From marble won, to marble turning!
"Leave us not thus!" we fondly pray.
"We cannot let thee pass away!"
Ah, well-a-day!
IV
My first is singular at best:
More plural is my second:
My third is far the pluralest —
So plural-plural, I protest
It scarcely can be reckoned!
149
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
My first is followed by a bird:
My second by believers
In magic art: my simple third
Follows, too often, hopes absurd
And plausible deceivers.
My first to get at wisdom tries —
A failure melancholy!
My second men revered as wise:
My third from heights of wisdom flies
To depths of frantic folly.
My first is aging day by day:
My second's age is ended:
My third enjoys an age, they say,
That never seems to fade away,
Through centuries extended.
My whole? I need a poet's pen
To paint her myriad phases:
The monarch, and the slave, of men —
A mountain-summit, and a den
Of dark and deadly mazes —
ISO
&
AND OTHER POEMS
A flashing light — a fleeting shade —
Beginning, end, and middle
Of all that human art hath made
Or wit devised! Go, seek her aid,
If you would read my riddle!
,*' i
A VALENTINE
^' \-^a. i^' [Sent to a friend who had complained that
I was glad enough to see him when he came,
but didn't seem to miss him if he stayed
^ away.]
■^
And cannot pleasures, while they last
Be actual unless, when past.
They leave us shuddering and aghast,
With anguish smarting?
And cannot friends be firm and fast,
And yet bear parting?
And must I then, at friendship's call,
Calmly resign the little all
(Trifling, I grant, it is and small)
I have of gladness.
And lend my being to the thrall
Of gloom and sadness?
IS2
V^t
M
^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
And think you that I should be dumb,
And full dolorum omnium.
Excepting when you choose to come
And share my dinner?
At other times be sour and glum
And daily thinner?
Must he, then, only live to weep.
Who'd prove his friendship true and deep?
By day a lonely shadow creep.
At night-time languish,
Oft raising in his broken sleep
The moan of anguish?
The lover, if for certain days
His fair one be denied his gaze.
Sinks not in grief and wild amaze,
But, wiser wooer.
He spends the time in writing lays,
And posts them to her.
^t And if the verse flow free and fast,
Till even the poet is aghast,
153
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
A touching Valentine at last
The post shall carry,
When thirteen days are gone and past
Of February.
Farewell, dear friend, and when we meet,
In desert waste or crowded street.
Perhaps before this week shall fleet,
Perhaps to-morrow,
I trust to find your heart the seat
Of wasting sorrow.
>v.
IS4
FAME'S PENNY-TRUMPET
[Affectionately dedicated to all "original research-
ers" who pant for "endowment."]
Blow, blow your trumpets till they crack,
Ye little men of little souls!
And bid them huddle at your back —
Gold-sucking leeches, shoals on shoals!
Fill all the air with hungry wails —
"Reward us, ere we think or write!
Without your Gold mere Knowledge fails
To sate the swinish appetite!"
And, where great Plato paced serene,
Or Newton paused with wistful eye,
Rush to the chase with hoofs unclean
And Babel-clamor of the sty!
^^
:::z;<^^i^'
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Be yours the pay: be theirs the praise:
We will not rob them of their due,
Nor vex the ghosts of other days
By naming them along with you.
They sought and found undying fame:
They toiled not for reward nor thanks:
Their cheeks are hot with honest shame
For you, the modern mountebanks!
Who preach of Justice— plead with tears
That Love and Mercy should abound —
While marking with complacent ears
The moaning of some tortured hound:
Who prate of Wisdom — nay, forbear,
Lest Wisdom turn on you in wrath.
Trampling, with heel that will not spare,
The vermin that beset her path!
Go, throng each other's drawing-rooms,
Ye idols of a petty clique:
Strut your brief hour in borrowed plumes.
And make your penny-trumpets squeak:
is6
^\i/
Be yours the pay : be theirs the praise :
We w^ill not rob them of their doe "
AND OTHER POEMS
Deck your dull talk with pilfered shreds
Of learning from a nobler time,
And oil each other's little heads
With mutual Flattery's golden slime:
And when the topmost height ye gain,
And stand in Glory's ether clear,
And grasp the prize of all your pain —
So many hundred pounds a year —
Then let Fame's banner be unfurled!
Sing pseans for a victory won!
Ye tapers, that would light the world,
And cast a shadow on the sun —
Who still shall pour his rays sublime,
One crystal flood, from east to west.
When ye have burned your little time
And feebly flickered into rest!
POEMS FROM '^ALICE'S
ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND''
DEDICATORY POEH
All in the golden afternoon
Full leisurely we glide;
For both our oars, with little skill,
By little arms are plied,
While little hands make vain pretence
Our wanderings to guide.
Ah, cruel three! In such an hour
Beneath such dreamy weather.
To beg a tale of breath too weak
To stir the tiniest feather!
Yet what can one poor voice avail
Against three tongues together?
Imperious Prima flashes forth
Her edict "to begin it";
In gentler tone Secunda hopes
"There will be nonsense in it!"
i6i
iJ^ ;■
^'v.J THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
While Tertia interrupts the tale 1
Not more than once a minute
-C^
Anon, to sudden silence won,
In fancy they pursue
The dream-child moving through a land
Of wonders wild and new,
In friendly chat with bird or beast —
And half believe it true.
And ever, as the story drained
The wells of fancy dry,
And faintly strove that weary one
To put the subject by,
"The rest next time — " "It is next time!
The happy voices cry.
Thus grew the tale of Wonderland;
Thus slowly, one by one,
Its quaint events were hammered out —
And now the tale is done,
And home we steer, a merry crew,
Beneath the setting sun.
162
i
'L_::^
"■u^
AND OTHER POEMS
Alice! a childish story take.
And with a gentle hand
Lay it where childhood's dreams are twined
In memory's mystic band,
Like pilgrim's withered wreath of flowers
Plucked in a far-off land.
THE CROCODILE
How doth the little crocodile
Improve his shining tail,
And pour the waters of the Nile
On every golden scale!
How cheerfully he seems to grin!
How neatly spread his claws,
And welcomes little fishes in
With gently smiling jaws!
I i :ti" t
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
4
A CAUCUS-RACE AND A LONG TALE
^U
Fury said to a mouse
That he met in the
house, " Let us both
go to law: I will
prosecute you.
Come, I'll take no
denial; We
must have a trial:
For really this
morning I've
nothing to do."
Said the mouse
to the cur,
"Such a
trial, dear
sir, With
no j ury
or judge,
would be
wasting
oiu" breath."
"I'll be
jud^e, I'll
be jury,"
said cun-
ning old
Fury; "I'll
try the whole
cause and
condemn
you to
death."
164
1^' St
* You are old, Father WillJam,' the young man said,
* And your hair has become very white ' "
FATHER WILLIAM
"You are old, Father William," the young man said,
"And your hair has become very white;
And yet you incessantly stand on your head —
Do you think, at your age, it is right?"
"In my youth," Father William replied to his son,
"I feared it might injure the brain;
But, now that I'm perfectly sure I have none,
Why, I do it again and again."
"You are old," said the youth, "as I mentioned before,
And have grown most uncommonly fat;
Yet you turned a back-somersault in at the door —
Pray, what is the reason of that?"
"In my youth," said the sage, as he shook his gray locks,
"I kept all my limbs very supple
By the use of this ointment — one shilling the box —
Allow me to sell you a couple?"
i6s
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"You are old," said the youth, "and your jaws are too
weak
For anything tougher than suet;
Yet you finished the goose, with the bones and the beak —
Pray, how did you manage to do it?"
"In my youth," said his father, "I took to the law.
And argued each case with my wife;
And the muscular strength which it gave to my jaw
Has lasted the rest of my life."
"You are old," said the youth, "one would hardly suppose
That your eye was as steady as ever;
Yet you balanced an eel on the end of your nose —
What made you so awfully clever?"
"I have answered three questions, and that is enough,"
Said his father; "don't give yourself airs!
Do you think I can listen all day to such stuff?
Be off, or I'll kick you down-stairs!"
i66
j4iiiP's^.V>f;'^?y^
A LULLABY
Speak roughly to your little boy,
And beat him when he sneezes:
He only does it to annoy,
Because he knows it teases.
Chorus
(In which the cook and the baby joined):
Wow! wow! wow!
I speak severely to my boy,
I beat him when he sneezes;
For he can thoroughly enjoy
The pepper when he pleases!
Chorus
Wow! wow! wow!
167
%
>JtSf"-~
THE WHITING AND THE SNAIL
"Will you walk a little faster?" said a whiting to a snail.
"There's a porpoise close behind us, and he's treading on
my tail.
See how eagerly the lobsters and the turtles all advance!
They are waiting on the shingle — will you come and join
the dance?
Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join
the dance?
Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, won't you
join the dance?
"You can really have no notion how delightful it will be
When they take us up and throw us, with the lobsters,
out to sea!"
But the snail repHed, "Too far, too far!" and gave a look
askance —
Said he thanked the whiting kindly, but he would not join
the dance.
i68
M
'— •^•y^^r^M^r
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Would not, could not, would not, could not, would not i^
join the dance.
Would not, could not, would not, could not, could not
join the dance.
"What matters it how far we go?" his scaly friend replied.
"There is another shore, you know, upon the other side.
The farther off from England the nearer is to France —
Then turn not pale, beloved snail, but come and join the
dance.
Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join
the dance?
Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, won't you
join the dance?"
169
oe-^
^fC?r^
'TIS THE VOICE OF THE LOBSTER
'Tis the voice of the Lobster; I heard him declare,
"You have baked me too brown, I must sugar my hair."
As a duck with its eyehds, so he with his nose
Trims his belt and his buttons, and turns out his toes.
When the sands are all dry, he is gay as a lark.
And will talk in contemptuous tones of the Shark;
But when the tide rises and sharks are around,
His voice has a timid and tremulous sound.
I passed by his garden, and marked with one eye
How the Owl and the Panther were sharing a pie:
The Panther took pie-crust and gravy and meat.
While the Owl had the dish as its share of the treat.
When the pie was all finished, the Owl, as a boon.
Was kindly permitted to pocket the spoon;
While the Panther received knife and fork with a growl,
And concluded the banquet —
170
' Beau — ootiful soo — oop !
Beau — ootiful soo — oopl"
^■,:.r,
^
TURTLE SOUP
Beautiful soup, so rich and green,
Waiting in a hot tureen!
Who for such dainties would not stoop?
Soup of the evening, beautiful soup!
Soup of the evening, beautiful soup!
Beau — ootiful soo — oop!
Beau — ootiful soo — oop!
Soo — oop of the e — e — evening,
Beautiful, beautiful soup!
Beautiful soup! Who cares for fish.
Game, or any other dish?
Who would not give all else for two p
Ennyworth only of beautiful soup?
Pennyworth only of beautiful soup?
Beau — ootiful soo — oop!
Beau — ootiful soo — oop!
Soo — oop of the e — e — evening,
Beautiful, beauti — ful soup!
171
I N II ^!
u
THE WHITE RABBIT'S VERSES
:,l^ They told me you had been to her,
' And mentioned me to him;
She gave me a good character,
But said I could not swim.
He sent them word I had not gone.
(We know it to be true.)
If she should push the matter on,
»>- ; . What would become of you?
''i ■Q
'(^
I gave her one, they gave him two,
You gave us three or more;
They all returned from him to you.
Though they were mine before.
If I or she should chance to be
Involved in this affair,
He trusts to you to set them free,
Exactly as we were.
172
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
My notion was that you had been
(Before she had this fit)
An obstacle that came between
Him and ourselves and it.
Don't let him know she liked them best,
For this must ever be
A secret, kept from all the rest,
Between yourself and me.
^n
m
t
! ■ f
^^l^^'""'
CHRISTMAS GREETINGS
[FROH A FAIRY TO A CHILD]
Lady, dear, if fairies may
For a moment lay aside
Cunning tricks and elfish play,
'Tis at happy Christmas-tide.
We have heard the children say —
Gentle children, whom we love —
Long ago, on Christmas Day,
Came a message from above.
Still, as Christmas-tide comes round,
They remember it again —
Echo still the joyful sound,
"Peace on earth, good-will to men!"
Yet the heart must childlike be
Where such heavenly guests abide.
Unto children, in their glee,
All the year is Christmas-tide.
174
•ys.
V>'
'•^i^^'
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Thus, forgetting tricks and play
For a moment, lady, dear,
We would wish you, if we may,
Merry Christmas, glad New Year!
TWINKLE, TWINKLE
Twinkle, twinkle, little bat!
How I wonder what you're at!
Up above the world you fly,
Like a tea-tray in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle —
175
\^
POEMS FROM
•* THROUGH THE LOOKING-GLASS*'
->>iK.:>g,a^r^^*'-T«°fe^"' .
^y." '■%
DEDICATORY POEM
Child of the pure, unclouded brow
And dreaming eyes of wonder!
Though time be fleet, and I and thou
Are half a life asunder,
Thy loving smile will surely hail
The love-gift of a fairy-tale.
I have not seen thy sunny face,
Nor heard thy silver laughter:
'No thought of me shall find a place
In thy young life's hereafter —
Enough that now thou wilt not fail
To listen to my fairy-tale.
A tale begun in other days,
When summer suns were glowing —
A simple chime, that served to time
The rhythm of our rowing —
Whose echoes live in memory yet, ^^^^^^
Though envious years would say "forget." \^
179 ^ ;
\ \
— ._ o.- ' '^ 7^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Come, hearken then, ere voice of dread,
With bitter tidings laden,
Shall summon to unwelcome bed
A melancholy maiden!
We are but older children, dear,
Who fret to find our bedtime near.
Without, the frost, the blinding snow, ("
The storm- wind's moody madness;
Within, the firelight's ruddy glow.
And childhood's nest of gladness.
The magic words shall hold thee fast:
Thou shalt not heed the raving blast.
And though the shadow of a sigh
May tremble through the story.
For "happy summer days" gone by
And vanished summer glory,
It shall not touch, with breath of bale,
The pleasance of our fairy-tale.
i8o
JABBERWOCKY
'TwAS brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
^__^ All mimsy were the borogoves,
^HJL>i And the mome raths outgrabe,
"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"
He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought-
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.
And, as in ufifish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame.
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!
i8i
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK Yl
One, two! One, two! And through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack! \ \
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.
"And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!"
He chortled in his joy.
'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves.
And the mome raths outgrabe.
-H^
""aVv.V^'*'-' -3
TWEEDLEDUM AND TWEEDLEDEE
Tweedledum and Tweedledee
Agreed to have a battle;
For Tweedledum said Tweedledee
Had spoiled his nice new rattle.
Just then flew down a monstrous crow,
As black as a tar-barrel;
Which frightened both the heroes so,
They quite forgot their quarrel.
HUSH-A-BY LADY
HusH-A-BY lady, in Alice's lap!
Till the feast's ready, we've time for a nap.
When the feast's over, we'll go to the ball —
Red Queen, and White Queen, and Alice, and all.
183
i,. .;-;-.Q"v,<>».
■' \
THE WALRUS AND THE CARPENTER
The sun was shining on the sea,
Shining with all his might;
He did his very best to make
The billows smooth and bright —
And this was odd, because it was
The middle of the night.
I
The moon was shining sulkily,
Because she thought the sun
Had got no business to be there
After the day was done —
"It's very rude of him," she said,
"To come and spoil the fun!"
The sea was wet as wet could be,
The sands were dry as dry.
You could not see a cloud, because
No cloud was in the sky;
No birds were flying overhead —
There were no birds to fly.
184
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
The Walrus and the Carpenter
Were walking close at hand;
They wept like anything to see
Such quantities of sand —
"If this were only cleared away,"
They said, "it would be grand!"
"If seven maids with seven mops
Swept it for half a year,
Do you suppose," the Walrus said,
"That they could get it clear?"
"I doubt it," said the Carpenter,
And shed a bitter tear.
"O Oysters, come and walk with us!"
The Walrus did beseech.
"A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk,
Along the briny beach;
We cannot do with more than four,
To give a hand to each,"
The eldest Oyster looked at him,
But never a word he said;
185
54
^-^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
The eldest Oyster winked his eye,
And shook his heavy head —
Meaning to say he did not choose
To leave the oyster-bed.
But four young Oysters hurried up,
All eager for the treat;
Their coats were brushed, their faces washed.
Their shoes were clean and neat —
And this was odd, because, you know,
They hadn't any feet.
^' ms
Four other Oysters followed them,
And yet another four;
And thick and fast they came at last,
And more, and more, and more —
All hopping through the frothy waves,
And scrambling to the shore.
The ^Walrus and the Carpenter
Walked on a mile or so.
And then they rested on a rock
Conveniently low —
i86
AND OTHER POEMS
And all the little Oysters stood
And waited in a row.
"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes — and ships — and sealing-wax —
Of cabbages — and kings — -;
And why the sea is boiling hot — (-'
And whether pigs have wings." f
"But wait a bit," the Oysters cried,
"Before we have our chat;
For some of us are out of breath,
And all of us are fat!"
"No hurry!" said the Carpenter.
They thanked him much for that.
*A loaf of bread," the Walrus said,
"Is what we chiefly need;
Pepper and vinegar besides
Are very good indeed —
Now, if you're ready. Oysters dear,
We can begin to feed."
187
^h
i
-^ ^^^-^.^'^4^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"But not on us!" the Oysters cried,
Turning a little blue.
"After such kindness, that would be
A dismal thing to do!"
"The night is fine," the Walrus said.
"Do you admire the view?"
"It was so kind of you to come!
And you are very nice!"
The Carpenter said nothing but,
" Cut us another slice.
I wish you were not quite so deaf —
I've had to ask you twice!"
i ^
y
A
"It seems a shame," the Walrus said,
" To play them such a trick.
After we've brought them out so far,
And made them trot so quick!"
The Carpenter said nothing but,
"The butter's spread too thick!"
"I weep for you," the Walrus said;
"I deeply sympathize."
^^iV^;
AND OTHER POEMS
With sobs and tears he sorted out
Those of the largest size,
Holding his pocket-handkerchief
Before his streaming eyes.
" O Oysters," said the Carpenter,
"You've had a pleasant run!
Shall we be trotting home again?"
But answer came there none —
And this was scarcely odd, because
They'd eaten every one.
::^^^
■Kml
wrj;'!^
'^^^,
.V :^
189
%::>
m
/'->i5
fM
IN WINTER, WHEN THE FIELDS
ARE WHITE
In winter, when the fields are white,
I sing this song for your deHght —
In spring, when woods are getting green
I'll try and tell you what I mean.
In summer, when the days are long.
Perhaps you'll understand the song;
In autumn, when the leaves are brown,
Take pen and ink and write it down.
I sent a message to the fish;
I told them, "This is what I wish."
^&V/
The little fishes of the sea.
They sent an answer back to me.
190
** And when I found the door was locked,
I pulled and pushed and kicked and knocked'*
^^v<
rCrw-J ':■",<,
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
The little fishes' answer was,
"We cannot do it, sir, because — "
I sent to them again to say,
"It will be better to obey."
The fishes answered, with a grin,
"Why, what a temper you are in!"
I told them once, I told them twice;
They would not listen to advice.
I took a kettle, large and new,
Fit for the deed I had to do.
My heart went hop, my heart went thump;
I filled the kettle at the pump.
Then some one came to me and said,
"The little fishes are in bed."
I said to him, I said it plain,
"Then you must wake them up again."
191
Hi
t
7 r"
'^ \l^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
I said it very loud and clear;
I went and shouted in his ear.
But he was very stiff and proud;
He said, "You needn't shout so loud!"
And he was very proud and stiff;
He said, "I'd go and wake them, if — "
I took a corkscrew from the shelf;
I went to wake them up myself.
And when I found the door was locked,
I pulled and pushed and kicked and knocked.
And when I found the door was shut,
I tried to turn the handle, but —
193
w
^
^s*^
^«^i^^>"^'^= tw/i>*«!.
N^
.->:^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
But chiefly for his wish that he
Might drink my noble health.
f'i?
And now, if e'er by chance I put
My fingers into glue,
Or madly squeeze a right-hand foot
a»^i Into a left-hand shoe,
Or if I drop upon my toe
A very heavy weight,
I weep, for it reminds me so
Of that old man I used to know —
Whose look was mild, whose speech was slow.
Whose hair was whiter than the snow,
Whose face was very like a crow,
With eyes, like cinders, all aglow,
^i}I^J7-(';^ Who seemed distracted with his woe.
Who rocked his body to and fro,
And muttered mumblingly and low.
As if his mouth were full of dough,
Who snorted like a buffalo —
That summer evening long ago,
A-sitting on a gate.
':4
V
Z96
''\^..-:^
VJ
TO THE LOOKING-GLASS WORLD
^o the Looking-Glass world it was Alice that said,
"I've a sceptre in hand, I've a crown on my head.
Let the Looking-Glass creatures, whatever they be.
Come and dine with the Red Queen, the White Queen,
and me!"
Then fill up the glasses as quick as you can.
And sprinkle the table with buttons and bran;
Put cats in the coffee, and mice in the tea —
And welcome Queen Alice with thirty-times-three!
"O Looking-Glass creatures," quoth Alice, "draw near!
'Tis an honor to see me, a favor to hear;
'Tis a privilege high to have dinner and tea
Along with the Red Queen, the White Queen, and me!"
Then fill up the glasses with treacle and ink,
Or anything else that is pleasant to drink;
Mix sand with the cider, and wool with the wine —
And welcome Queen Alice with ninety-times-nine!"
197
w
J^"^"
THE RIDDLE OF THE FISHES
"First, the fish must be caught."
That is easy; a baby, I think, could have caught it.
"Next, the fish must be bought."
That is easy; a penny, I think, would have bought it.
"Now cook me the fish!"
That is easy, and will not take more than a minute.
"Let it lie in a dish!"
That is easy, because it already is in it.
w
"Bring it here! Let me sup!"
It is easy to set such a dish on the table.
"Take the dish-cover up!"
Ah, that is so hard that I fear I'm unable!
For it holds it like glue —
Holds the lid to the dish, while it lies in the middle;
Which is easiest to do,
Un-dish-cover the fish, or dish-cover the riddle?
198
%>*^
■- ■». '^>
ei^rJifeac^:
* First, the fish must be caught '
That is easy ; a baby, I think, could have caught it "
Be>
LIFE IS BUT A DREAM
A BOAT, beneath a sunny sky
Lingering onward dreamily
In an evening of July —
Children three that nestle near,
Eager eye and willing ear,
Pleased a simple tale to hear —
Long has paled that sunny sky;
Echoes fade and memories die;
Autumn frosts have slain July.
Still she haunts me, phantomwise,
Alice moving under skies
Never seen by waking eyes.
Children yet, the tale to hear,
Eager eye and willing ear.
Lovingly shall nestle near.
199
■'^.\*irm^
>.c>
^uSJi^
■.^■
m\ !'>:,'
immm
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
In a Wonderland they lie,
Dreaming as the days go by,
Dreaming as the summers die;
M
Ever drifting down the stream —
Lingering in the golden gleam —
Life, what is it but a dream?
POEMS FROM
*'SYLVIE AND BRUNO*'
DEDICATORY POEM
Is all our life, then, but a dream
Seen faintly in the golden gleam
Athwart Time's dark, resistless stream?
Bowed to the earth with bitter woe,
I Or laughing at some raree-show,
We flutter idly to and fro.
Man's little day in haste we spend.
And from its merry noontide send
No glance to meet the silent end.
203
m
)'
2
IIi%ili(/,
THE MANLET
In stature the Manlet was dwarfish —
No burly, big Blunderbore he;
And he wearily gazed on the crawfish
His Wifelet had dressed for his tea.
"Now reach me, sweet Atom, my gunlet,
And hurl the old shoelet for luck;
Let me hie to the bank of the runlet,
And shoot thee a Duck!"
She has reached him his minikin gunlet;
She has hurled the old shoelet for luck;
She is busily baking a bunlet.
To welcome him home with his Duck.
On he speeds, never wasting a wordlet,
Though thoughtlets cling, closely as wax,
To the spot where the beautiful birdlet
So quietly quacks.
Where the Lobsterlet lurks, and the Crablet
So slowly and sleepily crawls;
304
**TheY bristle before him and after,
They flutter above and below"
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Where the Dolphin's at home, and the Dablet
Pays long, ceremonious calls;
Where the Grublet is sought by the Froglet;
Where the Frog is pursued by the Duck;
Where the Ducklet is chased by the Doglet —
So runs the world's luck!
"^^if*^
He has loaded with bullet and powder;
His footfall is noiseless as air;
But the Voices grow louder and louder,
And bellow and bluster and blare.
They bristle before him and after,
They flutter above and below,
Shrill shriekings of lubberly laughter,
Weird wailings of woe!
They echo without him, within him;
They thrill through his whiskers and beard;
Like a teetotum seeming to spin him,
With sneers never hitherto sneered.
" Avengement," they cry, "on our Foelet!
Let the Manikin weep for our wrongs!
Let us drench him, from toplet to toelet,
With Nursery Songs!
205
!f?i«/^v
v^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"He shall muse upon 'Hey! Diddle! Diddle!'
On the Cow that surmounted the Moon;
He shall rave of the Cat and the Fiddle,
And the Dish that eloped with the Spoon;
And his soul shall be sad for the Spider,
When Miss Muffet was sipping her whey,
That so tenderly sat down beside her.
And scared her away!
"The music of Midsummer madness
Shall sting him with many a bite,
Till, in rapture of rollicking sadness,
He shall groan with a gloomy delight;
He shall swathe him, like mists of the morning.
In platitudes luscious and limp,
Such as deck, with a deathless adorning.
The Song of the Shrimp!
\v:
"When the Ducklet's dark doom is decided.
We will trundle him home in a trice;
And the banquet, so plainly provided.
Shall rotmd into rose-buds and rice;
206
AND OTHER POEMS
In a blaze of pragmatic invention
He shall wrestle with Fate, and shall reign;
But he has not a friend fit to mention,
So hit him again!"
He has shot it, the delicate darling!
And the Voices have ceased from their strife;
Not a whisper of sneering or snarling,
As he carries it home to his wife;
Then, cheerily champing the bunlet
His spouse was so skilful to bake,
He hies him once more to the runlet
To fetch her the Drake!
KING FISHER'S WOOING
King Fisher courted Lady Bird —
Sing Beans, sing Bones, sing Butterflies!
"Find me my match," he said,
"With such a noble head —
With such a beard, as white as curd —
With such expressive eyes!"
"Yet pins have heads," said Lady Bird —
Sing Prunes, sing Prawns, sing Primrose-Hill!
"And where you stick them in
They stay, and thus a pin
Is very much to be preferred
To one that's never still!"
" Oysters have beards," said Lady Bird —
Sing Flies, sing Frogs, sing Fiddle-strings!
" I love them, for I know
They never chatter so;
They would not say one single word —
Not if you crowned them Kings!"
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"Needles have eyes," said Lady Bird —
Sing Cats, sing Corks, sing Cowslip-tea!
"And they are sharp — ^just what
Your Majesty is not;
So get you gone — 'tis too absurd
To come a-courting me/"
14
209
f\ Jljffx'/pK-^ ^
'^
»^J
^,
^^"- ^m:^'\:^'^^^i^:^^
■y^
LITTLE BIRDS
Little Birds are dining
Warily and well,
Hid in mossy cell;
Hid, I say, by waiters
Gorgeous in their gaiters —
I've a tale to tell.
Little Birds are feeding
Justices with jam,
Rich in frizzled ham;
Rich, I say, in oysters
Haunting shady cloisters —
That is what I am.
Little Birds are teaching
Tigresses to smile.
Innocent of guile;
Smile, I say, not smirkle —
Mouth a semicircle,
That's the proper style.
"Little Birds are feeding
Justices with jam"
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Little Birds are sleeping
All among the pins,
Where the loser wins;
Where, I say, he sneezes
When and how he pleases —
So the tale begins.
Little Birds are writing
Interesting books,
To be read by cooks;
Read, I say, not roasted —
Letter-press, when toasted.
Loses its good looks.
Little Birds are playing
Bagpipes on the shore.
Where the tourists snore.
" Thanks!" they cry. " 'Tis thrilling!
Take, oh, take, this shilHng!
Let us have no more!"
! i1 I ^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Like, but not so lasting —
Crocodiles, when fasting,
Are not all they seem!
Little Birds are choking
Baronets with bun,
Taught to fire a gun;
Taught, I say, to splinter
Salmon in the winter —
Merely for the fun.
Little Birds are hiding
Crimes in carpet-bags,
Blessed by happy stags;
Blessed, I say, though beaten —
Since our friends are eaten
When the memory flags.
Little Birds are tasting
Gratitude and gold,
Pale with sudden cold;
Pale, I say, and wrinkled —
When the bells have tinkled
And the tale is told.
^A
THE PIG TALE
There was a Pig that sat alone
Beside a ruined pump;
By day and night he made his moan —
It would have stirred a heart of stone
To see him wring his hoofs and groan,
Because he couM not jump.
A certain Camel heard him shout —
A Camel with a hump.
"Oh, is it grief, or is it gout?
What is this bellowing about?"
That Pig replied, with quivering snout,
"Because I cannot jump!"
That Camel scanned him, dreamy-eyed.
"Methinks you are too plump.
I never knew a Pig so wide —
213
X
.^g^^S^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
That wobbled so from side to side —
Who could, however much he tried,
Do such a thing as jump!
"Yet mark those trees, two miles away,
All clustered in a clump;
If you could trot there twice a day,
Nor ever pause for rest or play.
In the far future — who can say? —
You may be fit to jump."
That Camel passed and left him there
Beside the ruined pump.
Oh, horrid was that Pig's despair!
His shrieks of anguish filled the air.
He wrung his hoofs, he rent his hair,
Because he could not jump.
-^^
^
There was a Frog that wandered by —
A sleek and shining lump;
Inspected him with fishy eye.
And said, "O Pig, what makes you cry?'
And bitter was that Pig's reply,
"Because I cannot jump!"
214
** Oh, horrid was that Pig's despair !
His shrieks of anguish filled the air"
AND OTHER POEMS
That Frog he grinned a grin of glee,
And hit his chest a thump,
"O Pig," he said, "be ruled by me,
And you shall see what you shall see.
This minute, for a trifling fee,
I'll teach you how to jump!
"You may be faint from many a fall.
And bruised by many a bump;
But if you persevere through all.
And practise first on something small.
Concluding with a ten-foot wall.
You'll find that you can jump!"
That Pig looked up with joyful start:
"O Frog, you are a trump!
Your words have healed my inward smart-
Come, name your fee and do your part.
Bring comfort to a broken heart,
By teaching me to jump!"
"My fee shall be a mutton-chop,
My goal this ruined pump.
Observe with what an airy flop
215
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
I plant myself upon the top!
Now bend your knees and take a hop,
For that's the way to jump!"
Up rose that Pig, and rushed, lull whack,
Against the ruined pump.
Rolled over like an empty sack,
And settled down upon his back.
While all his bones at once went " Crack!"
It was a fatal jump.
That Camel passed, as day grew dim
Around the ruined pump.
"O broken heart! O broken limb!
It needs," that Camel said to him,
"Something more fairy -like and slim
To execute a jump!"
That Pig lay still as any stone,
And could not stir a stump.
Nor ever, if the truth were known,
Was he again observed to moan.
Nor ever wring his hoofs and groan,
Because he could not jump.
216
" Up rose that Pig, and rushed, full whack,
Against the ruined pump"
AND OTHER POEMS
That Frog made no remark, for he
Was dismal as a dump;
He knew the consequence must be
That he would never get his fee —
And still he sits, in miserie,
Upon that ruined pump!
«.5
217
§
£s-
ii
TING, TING, TING!
Rise, oh, rise! The dayhght dies,
The owls are hooting, ting, ting, ting!
Wake, oh, wake! Beside the lake
The elves are fluting, ting, ting, ting!
Welcoming our Fairy King,
We sing, sing, sing.
Hear, oh, hear! From far and near
The music stealing, ting, ting, ting!
Fairy bells adown the dells
Are merrily pealing, ting, ting, ting!
Welcoming our Fairy King,
We ring, ring, ring.
See, oh, see! On every tree
What lamps are shining, ting, ting, ting!
They are eyes of fiery flies
To light our dining, ting, ting, ting!
218
%
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Welcoming our Fairy King,
They swing, swing, swing.
Haste, oh, haste, to take and taste
The dainties waiting, ting, ting, ting!
Honey-dew is stored —
I
THE BADGERS AND THE HERRINGS
^
There be three Badgers on a mossy stone,
Beside a dark and covered way.
Each dreams himself a monarch on his throne,
And so they stay and stay —
Though their old Father languishes alone,
They stay, and stay, and stay.
There be three Herrings loitering around.
Longing to share that mossy seat.
Each Herring tries to sing what she has found
That makes life seem so sweet.
Thus, with a grating and uncertain sound.
They bleat, and bleat, and bleat.
The Mother-Herring, on the salt sea-wave,
Sought vainly for her absent ones;
The Father-Badger, writhing in a cave.
Shrieked out, "Return, my sons!
You shall have buns," he shrieked, "if you'll behave!
Yea, buns, and buns, and buns!"
"Thus the poor parents talked the time away,
And wept, and wept, and wept "
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"I fear," said she, "your sons have gone astray.
My daughters left me while I slept."
"Yes'm," the Badger said, "it's as you say."
"They should be better kept."
Thus the poor parents talked the time away,
And wept, and wept, and wept.
Oh, dear beyond our dearest dreams,
Fairer than all that fairest seems!
To feast the rosy hours away.
To revel in a roundelay!
How blest would be
A life so free —
Ipwergis pudding to consume
And drink the subtle Azzigoom!
And if, in other days and hours,
Mid other fluffs and other flowers.
The choice were given me how to dine —
"Name what thou wilt: it shall be thine!"
Oh, then I see
The life for me —
Ipwergis pudding to consume
And drink the subtle Azzigoom!
221
f
B
i#0
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
The Badgers did not care to talk to Fish;
They did not dote on Herrings' songs;
They never had experienced the dish
To which that name belongs.
"And oh, to pinch their tails" (this was their wish),
"With tongs, yea, tongs, and tongs!"
"And are not these the Fish," the eldest sighed,
"Whose Mother dwells beneath the foam?"
"They are the Fish!" the second one replied,
"And they have left their home!"
"Oh, wicked Fish," the youngest Badger cried,
"To roam, yea, roam, and roam!"
Gently the Badgers trotted to the shore —
The sandy shore that fringed the bay.
Each in his mouth a living Herring bore —
Those aged ones waxed gay.
Clear rang their voices through the ocean's roar,
"Hooray, hooray, hooray!"
BESSIE'S SONG TO HER DOLL
Matilda Jane, you never look
At any toy or picture-book.
I show you pretty things in vain —
You must be bHnd, Matilda Jane!
I ask you riddles, tell you tales.
But all our conversation fails.
You never answer me again —
I fear you're dumb, Matilda Jane!
Matilda, darling, when I call,
You never seem to hear at all.
I shout with all my might and main —
But you're so deaf, Matilda Jane!
Matilda Jane, you needn't mind.
For, though you're deaf and dumb and blind,
There's some one loves you, it is plain —
And that is me, Matilda Jane!
223
■••■"""5^,
m
fe
LOVE
Say, what is the spell, when her fledglings are cheeping.
That lures the bird home to her nest?
Or wakes the tired mother, whose infant is weeping,
To cuddle and croon it to rest?
What's the magic that charms the glad babe in her arms,
Till it cooes with the voice of the dove?
'Tis a secret, and so let us whisper it low —
And the name of the secret is Love!
For I think it is Love,
For I feel it is Love,
For I'm sure it is nothing but Love!
Say, whence is the voice that, when anger is burning.
Bids the whirl of the tempest to cease?
That stirs the vexed soul with an aching — a yearning
For the brotherly hand-grip of peace?
Whence the music that fills all our being — that thrills
Around us, beneath, and above?
224
^^
>
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
'Tis a secret; none knows how it comes, how it goes;
But the name of the secret is Love!
For I think it is Love,
For I feel it is Love,
For I'm sure it is nothing but Love!
Say, whose is the skill that paints valley and hill,
Like a picture so fair to the sight?
That flecks the green meadow with sunshine and shadow.
Till the little lambs leap with delight?
'Tis a secret untold to hearts cruel and cold,
Though 'tis sung by the angels above,
In notes that ring clear for the ears that can hear —
And the name of the secret is Love!
For I think it is Love,
For I feel it is Love,
For I'm sure it is nothing but Love!
225
V^^^.^;?^, ^fl-^-^J^
V A
'^^»iv4S^\'
THE GARDENER'S SONG
He thought he saw an Albatross
That fluttered round the lamp;
He looked again, and found it was
A Penny-Postage-Stamp.
"You'd best be getting home," he said;
"The nights are very damp!"
He thought he saw an Argument
That proved he was the Pope;
He looked again, and found it was
A Bar-of-Mottled-Soap.
"A fact so dread," he faintly said,
"Extinguishes all hope!"
He thought he saw a Banker's-Clerk
Descending from the bus;
He looked again, and found it was
A Hippopotamus.
"If this should stay to dine," he said,
"There won't be much for us!"
226
'He thought he saw a Kangaroo
That worked a coffee-mill "
\m
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
He thought he saw a Buffalo
Upon the chimney-piece;
He looked again, and found it was
His Sister's-Husband's-Niece.
"Unless you leave this house," he said,
"I'll send for the police!"
He thought he saw a Coach-ana-Four
That stood beside his bed;
He looked again, and found it was
A Bear without a head.
"Poor thing!" he said — "poor, silly thing!
It's waiting to be fed!"
He thought he saw a Garden-Door
That opened with a key;
He looked again, and found it was
A Double-Rule-of-Three.
"And all its mystery," he said,
"Is clear as day to me!"
He thought he saw a Kangaroo
That worked a coffee-mill;
'-viijp^"'
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
He looked again, and found it was
A Vegetable-Pill.
"Were I to swallow this," he said,
"I should be very ill!"
He thought he saw a Rattlesnake
That questioned him in Greek;
He looked again, and found it was
The Middle-of-Next-Week.
'The one thing I regret," he said,
"Is that it cannot speak!"
328
PETER AND PAUL
" Peter is poor," said noble Paul,
"And I have always been his friend;
And though my means to give are small,
At least I can afford to lend.
How few, in this cold age of greed.
Do good, except on selfish grounds!
But I can feel for Peter's need.
And I WILL LEND HIM FIFTY POUNDS !"
How great was Peter's joy to find
His friend in such a genial vein!
How cheerfully the bond he signed
To pay the money back again!
"We can't," said Paul, "be too precise;
'Tis best to fix the very day;
So, by a learned friend's advice,
I've made it Noon, the Fourth of May."
"But this is April!" Peter said —
"The First of April, as I think.
229
^^^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Five little weeks will soon be fled;
One scarcely will have time to wink!
Give me a year to speculate —
To buy and sell — to drive a trade — "
Said Paul, "I cannot change the date.
On May the Fourth it must be paid."
• ■??
"Well, well!" said Peter, with a sigh.
"Hand me the cash, and I will go.
I'll form a Joint-Stock Company,
And turn an honest pound or so."
"I'm grieved," said Paul, "to seem unkind;
The money shall, of course, be lent;
But, for a week or two, I find
It will not be convenient."
>;vr-v v/i;,.^,><;
So, week by week, poor Peter came
And turned in heaviness away;
For still the answer was the same —
"I cannot manage it to-day."
And now the April showers were dry —
The five short weeks were nearly spent-
Yet still he got the old reply,
"It is not quite convenient!"
230
?ti'^.
'Poor Peter' shuddjred in despair;
His flowing locks he wildly tore "
SSs^^p*'-''
AND OTHER POEMS
The Fourth arrived, and punctual Paul
Came, with his legal friend, at noon.
"I thought it best," said he, "to call;
One cannot settle things too soon."
Poor Peter shuddered in despair;
His flowing locks he wildly tore;
And very soon his yellow hair
Was lying all about the floor.
The legal friend was standing by,
With sudden pity half unmanned;
The tear-drop trembled in his eye.
The signed agreement in his hand.
But when at length the legal soul
Resumed its customary force,
"The Law," he said, "we can't control:
Pay, or the Law must take its course!"
Said Paul, "How bitterly I rue
That fatal morning when I called!
Consider, Peter, what you do!
You won't be richer when you're bald!
Think you, by rending curls away,
To make your difficulties less?
231
^
ik0,
iv^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Forbear this violence, I pray;
You do but add to my distress!"
"Not willingly would I inflict,"
Said Peter, "on that noble heart
One needless pang. Yet why so strict?
Is this to act a friendly part?
However legal it may be
To pay what never has been lent,
^^^K This style of business seems to me
Extremely inconvenient!
t^ipUjs^J "No nobleness of soul have I,
Like some that in this age are found!"
ff (Paul blushed in sheer humility,
And cast his eyes upon the ground.)
"This debt will simply swallow all,
And make my life a life of woe!"
"Nay, nay, my Peter!" answered Paul,
"You must not rail on Fortune so!
<:^
"You have enough to eat and drink;
You are respected in the world;
And at the barber's, as I think.
You often get your whiskers curled.
232
AND OTHER POEMS
Though nobleness you can't attain-
To any very great extent —
The path of honesty is plain,
However inconvenient ! ' '
*"Tis true," said Peter, "I'm alive;
I keep my station in the world;
Once in the week I just contrive
To get my whiskers oiled and curled.
But my assets are very low;
My little income's overspent;
To trench on capital, you know.
Is always inconvenient."
" But pay your debts!" cried honest Paul.
"My gentle Peter, pay your debts!
What matter if it swallows all
That you describe as your * assets ' ?
7( Already you're an hour behind;
Yet generosity is best.
It pinches me — but never mind!
I WILL NOT CHARGE YOU INTEREST!"
233
l-^'i
m
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
"How good! How great!" poor Peter cried.
"Yet I must sell my Sunday wig,
The scarf-pin that has been my pride,
My grand piano, and my pig!"
Full soon his property took wings;
And daily, as each treasure went.
He sighed to find the state of things
Grow less and less convenient.
fc>. Weeks grew to months, and months to years;
Peter was worn to skin and bone;
And once he even said, with tears,
"Remember, Paul, that promised loan!"
Said Paul, "I'll lend you, when I can,
All the spare money I have got.
Ah, Peter, you're a happy man!
Yours is an enviable lot!
"I'm getting stout, as you may see;
It is but seldom I am well;
I cannot feel my ancient glee
In listening to the dinner-bell.
But you, you gambol like a boy,
Your figure is so spare and light;
234
I
J^&
r
■^^^
AND OTHER POEMS
The dinner-bell's a note of joy
To such a healthy appetite!"
Said Peter, "I am well aware
Mine is a state of happiness;
And yet how gladly could I spare
Some of the comforts I possess!
What you call healthy appetite
/ feel as Hunger's savage tooth;
And when no dinner is in sight
The dinner-bell's a sound of ruth!
"No scarecrow would accept this coat;
Such boots as these you seldom see.
Ah, Paul, a single five-pound note
Would make another man of me!"
Said Paul, "It fills me with surprise
To hear you talk in such a tone.
I fear you scarcely realize
The blessings that are all your own!
"You're safe from being overfed;
You're sweetly picturesque in rags;
You never know the aching head
That comes along with money-bags;
235
i
I
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
And you have time to cultivate
That best of qualities, content —
For which you'll find your present state
Remarkably convenient ! ' '
Said Peter, "Though I cannot sound
The depths of such a man as you.
Yet in your character I've found
An inconsistency or two.
You seem to h^ve long years to spare
When there's a promise to fulfil;
And yet how punctual you were
In calling with that little bill!"
4
"One can't be too deliberate,"
Said Paul, "in parting with one's pelf.
With bills, as you correctly state,
I'm punctuality itself.
A man may surely claim his dues;
But, when there's money to be lent,
A man must be allowed to choose
Such times as are convenient!"
236
u^^V-
AND OTHER POEMS
It chanced one day, as Peter sat
Gnawing a crust — his usual meal —
Paul bustled in to have a chat,
And grasped his hand with friendly zeal.
"I knew," said he, "your frugal ways;
So, that I might not wound your pride
By bringing strangers in to gaze,
I've left my legal friend outside!
"You well remember, I am sure,
When first your wealth began to go,
And people sneered at one so poor,
/ never used my Peter so!
And when you'd lost your little all.
And found yourself a thing despised,
I need not ask you to recall
How tenderly I sympathized!
"Then the advice I've poured on you,
So full of wisdom and of wit —
All given gratis, though 'tis true
I might have fairly charged for it!
But I refrain from mentioning
Full many a deed I might relate,
237
SV
\
-.M.
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
For boasting is a kind of thing
That I particularly hate.
"How vast the total sum appears
Of all the kindnesses I've done,
From childhood's half-forgotten years
Down to that Loan of April One!
That Fifty Pounds! You little guessed
How deep it drained my slender store;
But there's a heart within this breast,
And I WILL LEND YOU FIFTY MORE!"
"Not so," was Peter's mild reply,
His cheeks all wet with grateful tears.
"No man recalls, so well as I,
Your services in by-gone years;
And this new offer, I admit,
Is very, very kindly meant.
Still, to avail myself of it
Would not be quite convenient!"
238
WHEN HE WAS FAR AWAY
He stepped so lightly to the land,
All in his manly pride;
He kissed her cheek, he pressed her hand,
Yet still she glanced aside.
"Too gay he seems," she darkly dreams,
"Too gallant and too gay ^
To think of me — poor simple me —
"When he is far away!"
"I bring my Love this goodly pearl
Across the seas," he said;
" A gem to deck the dearest girl
That ever sailor wed!"
She clasps it tight — her eyes are bright —
Her throbbing heart would say,
" He thought of me — he thought of me —
When he was far away!"
239
i>jHn ^^^ r~ir;i
Si
&
"i TiirVrr
Vi NO Vii
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
The ship has sailed into the west;
Her ocean-bird is flown;
A dull, dead pain is in her breast,
And she is weak and lone.
Yet there's a smile upon her face,
A smile that seems to say,
" He'll think of me — he'll think of me —
When he is far away!
"Though waters wide between us glide,
Our lives are warm and near;
No distance parts two faithful hearts —
Two hearts that love so dear.
And I will trust my sailor-lad.
Forever and a day.
To think of me — to think of me —
When he is far away!"
r
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.^-^i
ONE THOUSAND POUNDS
PER ANNUUM
"One thousand pounds per annuum
Is not so bad a figure — come!"
Cried Tottles. "And I tell you, flat,
A man may marry well on that!
To say ' the Husband needs the Wife '
Is not the way to represent it.
The crowning joy of Woman's life
Is Man!" said Tottles (and he meant it).
The blissful honeymoon is past;
The pair have settled down at last;
Mamma-in-law their home will share,
And make their happiness her care.
"Your income is an ample one.
Go it, my children!" (And they went it.)
"I rayther think this kind of fun
Won't last!" said Tottles (and he meant it).
16 241
mmm
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
They took a little country-box,
A box at Covent Garden also;
They lived a life of double-knocks,
Acquaintances began to call so;
Their London house was much the same
(It took three hundred, clear, to rent it).
"Life is a very jolly game!"
Cried happy Tottles (and he meant it).
"Contented with a frugal lot"
(He always used that phrase at Gunter's)
He bought a handy little yacht,
A dozen serviceable hunters,
The fishing of a Highland loch,
A sailing-boat to circumvent it.
'The sounding of that Gaelic 'och'
Beats me!'' said Tottles (and he meant it)
But, oh, the worst of human ills
(Poor Tottles found) are "little bills"!
And, with no balance in the bank.
What wonder that his spirits sank.?
Still, as the money flowed away,
He wondered how on earth she spent it
242
,ll
AND OTHER POEMS
"You cost me twenty pounds a day,
At least!" cried Tottles (and he meant it).
She sighed. "Those drawing-rooms, you know!
I really never thought about it.
Mamma declared we ought to go —
We should be nobodies without it.
That diamond circlet for my brow —
I quite believed that she had sent it,
Until the bill came in just now — "
"Viper!" cried Tottles (and he meant it).
Poor Mrs. T. could bear no more.
But fainted flat upon the floor.
Mamma-in-law, with anguish wild,
Seeks all in vain to rouse her child.
"Quick! Take this box of smelhng-salts!
Don't scold her, James, or you'll repent it.
She's a dear girl, with all her faults — "
"She is!" groaned Tottles (and he meant it).
"I was a donkey," Tottles cried,
"To choose your daughter for my bride!
243
0^?
m^mmm'mmi
■p,
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
'Twas you that bid us cut a dash!
'Tis you have brought us to this smash!
You don't suggest one single thing
That can in any way prevent it.
Then what's the use of arguing?
Shut up!" cried Tottles (and he meant it)
"And, now the mischief's done, perhaps
You'll kindly go and pack your traps?
Since two (your daughter and your son)
Are company, but three are none.
A course of saving we'll begin.
When change is needed, /'// invent it.
Don't think to put your finger in
This pie!" cried Tottles (and he meant it).
^.
444
%
"'And, now the mischief's done, perhaps
Youll kindly go and pack your traps?'"
A LESSON IN LATIN
Our Latin books, in motley row,
Invite us to the task —
Gay Horace, stately Cicero;
Yet there's one verb, when once we know
No higher skill we ask;
This ranks all other lore above —
We've learned "aniare" means "to love"'
So hour by houri from flower to flowerj
We sip the sweets of life,
Till, ah! too soon the clouds arise,
And knitted brows and angry eyes
Proclaim the dawn of strife.
With half a smile and half a sigh,
^ "Amare! Bitter One!" we cry. ^
a45
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8
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..^^^SSSSaL^.
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK
Last night we owned, with looks forlorn,
"Too well the scholar knows
There is not rose without a thorn";
But peace is made! We sing, this morn,
"No thorn without a rose!"
Our Latin lesson is complete:
We've learned that Love is "Bitter-sweet.'
b^.
346
iV
^:2^^V-
MY FANCY
I PAINTED her a gushing thing,
With years perhaps a score;
I Httle thought to find they were
At least a dozen more;
My fancy gave her eyes of blue,
A curly, auburn head;
I came to find the blue a green
The auburn turned to red.
She boxed my ears this morning—
They tingled very much;
I own that I could wish her
A somewhat Hghter touch;
And if you were to ask me how
Her charms might be improved,
I would not have them added to.
But just a few removed!
247
viV^S^i^^ Iv t ti;;/rtii^
THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK '^^'^l'
She has the bear's ethereal grace, t»j
The bland hyena's laugh,
The footstep of the elephant,
The neck of the giraffe.
I love her still, believe me,
Though my heart its passion hides;
"She is all my fancy painted her,"
But, oh, how much besides!
THE END
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